Rune Adventurers
by Clara WaterBrooke
Summary: Rune Factory 1!Raguna is a boy with no memories, Ivan is looking for some one very special to him, could the two be what the other has been needing? What's this? Trouble is up ahead and only the brave will survive? And what exactly is Raguna hiding from everyone else? What is Raguna's dark past? Read to find out! Rated T because I'm paranoid. Please give this story a try!
1. Game Start!

**Hello there guys! Yes it is I, CWB(ClaraWaterBrooke), with another story. I have not given up on the Yugioh story that is called** _ **New Beginnings.**_ **Any yugioh fans…please check my story out! For the ones that are here for Rune Factory…I do plan on making this a story, not sure if I will ever finish it, but I will update my stories as long as I have ideas. Feel free to comment any ideas you may have!**

 **Yugi: Hey! I'm from her other story, just going to be doing a short cameo right now. The reason behind this story is to inspire people to create more stories that have Ivan and Raguna in it.**

 **Yeah, what she said. Btw, yugi's a female in my story! Not a male, the relationships are Hikari x Yami. Besides that, there aren't many stories where they have Raguna and Ivan interact, I know the ending of the game didn't make it obvious and left it up to the player to decide, but I at least want to make them interact!**

 **Raguna: So basically, it's my story from 1** **st** **person point of view, but most of the time it will be in normal POV.**

 **Ivan: *reads brainstorming ideas* `You, deluded, Yugioh fan…It's an interesting idea but, wth!**

 ***laughs* I know, I may be using some Japanese, which will be translated; in this fanfic as well…we'll have to see. Also Raguna has a secret in this fanfic, it's basically what Ivan read. I think it may show up in this chapter…not sure.**

 **Raguna: Anyway…**

"Speaking"

/thoughts/

((Telepathy)) **((Telepathy))**

 **Ivan: Btw, telepathy will be in this! Maybe even some mentions of Yugioh, BUT you don't have to know anything about yugioh to understand this** **. CWB owns nothing except the plot of this fanfic!**

* * *

 **Chapter 1: Game Start!**

It was a bright sunny day in the land of Kardia. Everything was peaceful and the villagers were happy. One person in specific was selling things, a merchant if you will, and he was also looking out for someone special that he had lost some time ago, but neither of these people knew of the dangers to come…

++++(Another Scene)

*pant* *pant* "How long have I been walking? I need water and some food" *pant* an unknown person said.

 **((Hey))** Someone said in this persons mind

"Ack! Who was that!" the person takes a look around, "Oh great, now I'm hallucinating." The person said

 **((Good guess, kid, but not quite right))** The voice said again.

"Ok voice leave me alone…I need water and food *pant*" Right then the person collapses.

 **((KID!))** the voice yelled in…concern? No, that couldn't be right, but alas, it is the last thing the person hears before the world blacked out.

++++(Another Scene)

A girl with white hair and blue eyes was walking to her house, but on the way she saw a collapsed body on the dirt path. The girl gasped and ran towards the person, which was still breathing, thankfully. She then ran off to get the doctor of the village.

++++(Another Scene)

When the person came to, they seemed to be in a white room.

"Ugh, my head." The person said. Right then a woman entered with a bowl of water and a towel.

*Gasp* "Your awake! Thank goodness, I was worried that you were to malnourished to be able to wake up. Now take this and eat it." The woman said and shoved a tray with food onto the persons lap.

"T-Thank you. What's your name?" The person asked in a low tone. You could see that this person was a bit timid around other people that they didn't know or trust.

"My name is Lara. *smile* what is yours?" The women, Lara, asked.

"Mine is Raguna…I think." The person, now revealed as Raguna, said.

"I don't really remember much, I want some time alone so that I can think, also could you tell the person that saved me that I would like to see them…to thank them in person." Raguna quietly said, almost as if he was afraid that asking that question would get him in trouble.

"Of course I can do that. Just come into the waiting room once you are ready." Lara smiled and walked away having two questions on her mind. Why did Raguna flinch when she yelled, and what was he afraid of.

++++(Another Scene)

Back at the room…

"Ugh, why can't I remember anything?" Raguna asked himself.

 **((H-Hello))** oh great, the voice was back.

"Here I thought that I was hallucinating." Raguna sighed and put a hand up to his head.

 **((Not really, kid…Are you feeling alright? I can feel your confusion all the way over at my dimension. It's because of the bracelet you have on, it's some kind of mood detector, it also allows me to go to your world, you to come to mine, for us to talk like this I am using a microphone that only you can hear, by the way. Oh it also allows us to switch places.))**

"Alright…that's even more confusing. Just who are you anyway? And why do you care if I'm alright or not?" Raguna asked the voice.

 **((My name is Matthew, but you can call me Matt. As for why I care, well, you are my partner, not to mention my carbon copy…almost. We have quite a few differences. But overall, you are my partner, I want to know if you need help.))**

"Look it's not that I don't appreciate it, but…how am I supposed to believe that?" Raguna pointed out.

 **((*sigh* I guess that you can't, what made you distrust others this much, Raguna.))** silence was Matt's answer.

 **/man, I wish I could help him out a bit more, but how am I supposed to when I don't even know him, I was just recently appointed his guardian over at the middle dimension, which is my world, not to mention that he kind of looks like he might be my direct descendant…I wonder if he'll let me be his older brother. I always wanted I little sibling after all./** Matt thought.

"I'm going over to the waiting room…Matt." Raguna stumbled over the others name, as he got up and went to find his way to the waiting room.

/I feel…safe? No, no, no, that's not the word. At peace, maybe? Something that's along those lines? When Matt's around, I really can't help but feel protected…I wonder why that is though, I just met, no, _heard_ him after all? Does he know who I am? Or does he mean to harm me? Betray me? But my instincts tell me to trust him, and my instincts have never failed me…that I know of, so maybe Matt's okay to be around? Ugh, this is all so confusing./ Was Raguna's last thought before entering the waiting room…

* * *

 **Well that's a wrap! Wow, interesting chapter…came out better than I thought! So what do you guys think? Do you want it continued?**

 **Raguna: Please Favorite**

 **Follow**

 **Ivan: And review. You know you want too, just hit that box at the bottom of the page, haha. Be sure to comment if you want it continued, also leave some Ideas, they will be taken into account, and most likely implemented into the story at some point. Of course CWB will add her own twist to it, but you might (most likely) get a shout out for the idea.**


	2. The Farm and Monsters

**Welcome to a new chapter! Do you guys want this story continued? Leave that down in the review! Here's a taste of what the story will be, in other words, this is chapter 2!**

 **Raguna: CWB doesn't own anything except the plot of this story.**

 **Ivan: Anyway:**

"Speaking"

/thoughts/

((Telepathy)) **((Telepathy))**

 **Raguna and Ivan: Chapter start!**

* * *

 **Chapter 2: The farm and monsters**

Last chapter: /I feel…safe? No, no, no, that's not the word. At peace, maybe? Something that's along those lines? When Matt's around, I really can't help but feel protected…I wonder why that is though, I just met, no, heard him after all? Does he know who I am? Or does he mean to harm me? Betray me? But my instincts tell me to trust him, and my instincts have never failed me…that I know of, so maybe Matt's okay to be around? Ugh, this is all so confusing./ Was Raguna's last thought before entering the waiting room…

* * *

As Raguna entered the room he saw the nurse, Lara, and a girl with white hair and blue eyes.

"Oh, hi there Raguna. This is Mist, the one who brought you here." Lara said with a smile.

"Are you alright!? You aren't hurt are you? If you are let me know, I could always cook some food for you. Maybe I could even buy you some medicine…" The girl, Mist, ranted on.

"N-No need to do that, I'm fine…Really I am." He added when he saw Mist's disbelieving look.

"I just wanted to thank you for saving me, that's all. So thank you, if there's anything I can do to repay you" Raguna was cut off.

"Oh don't be silly! You getting better is enough to repay me. I just want to know if you have a place to stay in. I haven't seen you around these parts…do you have any money to stay at some place? Do you have a house?" Mist asked.

"U-uh, n-not really. My trip here wasn't exactly planned." Raguna explained

"Then you can have my old house! It even has a farm so you can make money off of that. So do you accept my offer?" Mist tilted her head and asked.

"N-no, I couldn't possibly…" Raguna started

"No, it's alright. I'm not even using it. You can have it! I insist that you live there, I wouldn't be able to forgive myself if you wind up dead while in this town." Mist insisted.

"Uh, alright, if you insist." Raguna agreed reluctantly. After this mist took him to the farm and there they came across a monster, which Raguna defeated by hitting it with the hoe at least five times. Mist thought him how to farm, gave him 1 pack of radish seeds, and then left.

"I don't get it…why is she, and Lara, so nice to me?" Raguna asked himself.

 **((Maybe, because, they care?))** Matt supplied.

"Why would they though, I'm no one to care for. I'm just little old me, don't even have my memories…the only thing I remember are the last 4 years…" Raguna trailed off.

 **((Raguna? What happened in the last 4 years?))** Matt asked, thinking that whatever caused Raguna to be like this happened between those years. Not that he got an answer from Raguna.

"I think, I'm going to go and explore the town a bit." Raguna headed off towards town, but he soon found out that everything was closed, once he neared the plaza he saw someone there. He walked towards the person but then stopped, contemplating if it was a good idea to go or not. Just as he made up his mind (because of the fear that he had) to leave, the person turned around, showing a slightly paler skin than his, lighter brown hair that was longer than his, and some kind of blue eyes, maybe blue-green?

"Hello there…stranger, I haven't seen you around these parts. What's your name?" the person that looked like Raguna asked.

"M-My name's Raguna…I think. And who are you?" Raguna asked his 'look-alike' which gained a look of surprise at his name, then it changed into a frown when he said 'I think', and then all of the persons reactions were covered with a slightly stunned face, but in all of Raguna's years of learning how to read other people's actions, he could tell the stranger was more than slightly stunned, when he asked who the other person was.

"My name is…" the stranger started.

 **Anyone want to guess who it is? Do you want this continued? Leave a review, even if you don't have a fanfiction account, you can still leave a review!**

 **See ya next chapter!**


	3. Lets chat!

**Welcome to chapter 3! Sorry I haven't uploaded in so long, I have writers block for this chapter.**

 **Ivan: This chapter was a bit awkward for her to write, please tell us what you think about it!**

 **Raguna: Shout outs to MoonlightPrancing and a friend of CWB for helping out with this chapter. CWB isn't sure if the friend wanted to be named, so she decided to just say friend, it is the internet after all, you can never be too careful. Too that friend…You know who you are. Just giving you credit for this chapter.**

 **Raguna and Ivan: Anyhow,**

"Speaking"

/thoughts/

((Telepathy)) **((Telepathy))**

 **All of us: Let's get this started!**

* * *

 **Chapter 3: Let's Chat**

* * *

Last Chapter: Just as he made up his mind (because of the fear that he had) to leave, the person turned around, showing a slightly paler skin than his, lighter brown hair that was longer than his, and some kind of blue eyes, maybe blue-green?

"Hello there…stranger, I haven't seen you around these parts. What's your name?" the person that looked like Raguna asked.

"M-My name's Raguna…I think. And who are you?" Raguna asked his 'look-alike' which gained a look of surprise at his name, then it changed into a frown when he said 'I think', and then all of the persons reactions were covered with a slightly stunned face, but in all of Raguna's years of learning how to read other people's actions, he could tell the stranger was more than slightly stunned, when he asked who the other person was.

"My name is…" the stranger started.

* * *

"My name is Ivan." Raguna's look-a-like, now named Ivan, said.

++++(Another Scene: Ivan's POV)

I couldn't believe what I was seeing. I knew someone was close by so I turned around, but this wasn't what I expected. This is the last person I thought I would see.

"Nice to meet you." I said to Raguna, why am I doing this? It may be because he doesn't seem to remember me, which is quite a surprise. I don't want to freak him out or anything, how freaky would it have been if I had called him Raguna instead of stranger? Besides, it could just be someone that looks like him, but what is the possibility of them having the same name?

"N-Nice to meet you too." Raguna responded. Why is he stuttering? Is he afraid of me or something? Silence fell above us and I discreetly looked at him. Was it me or was he shaking a bit? It isn't cold right now so that option is out of the question. Then is he really scared of me, or is he just generally scared of things? He does seem to be on guard, like he's waiting for something to jump out and attack him at any moment. The silence between us is starting to become deafening; I've got to do something about it.

"So…How are you?" Okay, Ivan, that was a really lame attempt at a conversation.

++++(Another Scene: Raguna's POV)

I can tell he's looking at me, but I have to wonder why. Why did he seem surprised at my name? Why was he stunned when I asked who he was? This is getting really uncomfortable, last time I was this long in someone else's presence I ended up…No! I'm out of there already, they can't get me here…I hope. Am I shaking? Yes, yes I am, come on Raguna control your reactions.

/I don't want to be here any longer…but why do I feel like I know who Ivan is? He seemed surprised when he saw me, but he could be confusing me for someone else, right? I wonder if the telepathy works vice versa?/ Raguna thought, unaware he had used the telepathy link.

 **((Well apparently you've unlocked the option where we don't have to use the microphone, so…what's up? Who did you meet that has you this confused?))**

((Oh, it's this guy named Ivan, he looks a lot like me, and by the way since when can I see you?)) Raguna said while slightly staring at an older version of him. He looked over at Ivan to see him staring at the same spot that Matt was at. This made Raguna think that maybe Ivan saw Matt, but then Ivan blinked and looked confused. Raguna could only guess that Ivan did see Matt but not for long.

 **((Since you unlocked the telepathy link, you see I am in a room that has a connection to your bracelet. I wanted you to be able to see me without me having to appear over there, so the bracelet to it upon itself to make some sort of holographic version of me. Only people that have the same bracelet can actually see or sense me.))**

((Is that so? I think Ivan saw you, even if it was just for a mere second))

"So…how are you?" Ivan asked me. The silence must have been getting to him.

"I'm alright, what about you?" I asked him.

"I'm good…Now this might sound a bit insensitive but, when you said your name, you said 'I think', why did you say that?" Ivan asked, hoping he didn't sound to insensitive.

"Well, I believe my name is Raguna, though I'm not sure…You see I have lost my memories." I explained to him.

++++(Another Scene: Normal POV)

When Ivan heard that Raguna had lost his memory, he was shocked.

/that would explain why Raguna doesn't seem to remember me…*sigh* I wish I could help him out./ Ivan thought

"I'm sorry, I didn't know. It must be hard, living without knowing your past." Ivan said.

"Yeah, well, I most certainly wish I would get amnesia…" Raguna mumbled low enough for only Matt and himself to hear, or so he thought.

/What? Why would he wish to get amnesia? Could something bad have happened? Speaking of that, what is Raguna scared of? He does seem a bit paranoid…What could have happened to him?/ Ivan thought

((Should I ask him?))

 **((Ask him what? I'm not a mind reader, Raguna))** Matt teased him.

((Ha-ha very funny, but really, I feel like I should know him. Should I ask him?))

 **((If you want to, Raguna. Nobody's going to force you to. But if I may ask, weren't you scared of him at first?))**

((Well, yes, I was scared of him. It's just that, my instincts tell me to trust him, and I feel like I should remember him, plus I can't just wave off the similarities that we share, we can't look this a-like to someone, right?))

 **((Raguna…Have you taken a good look at me? I could pass of as your older brother!))**

((Ok, point taken. Should I ask him though?))

 **((As I said earlier, it's your choice Raguna))**

"Um…I-Ivan?" Raguna said.

"Hmm, yes, Raguna?" Ivan asked

"Why do I feel like I know you?" The moment these words left Raguna's mouth, Ivan's eyes went as wide as plates.

"Well, um, that, uh…*sigh* I was never very good at coming up with excuses. You did use to know me back then, but since you lost your memories, I didn't think that you'd somewhat remember me. I won't tell you exactly who I am since I want you to figure that out yourself, but maybe I can take you to some places you used to go to. It may jog some memories for you." Ivan sincerely said.

"I would like that, just a warning though, I don't know how I acted back then, but I definitely know that I have changed. I like to keep to myself a lot and I'm sure you've noticed but most of the time I'm paranoid." Raguna explained.

"Yeah, I've noticed that, your actions have changed, I won't ask why so don't worry about that. Though if you could trust me, I would like to know where you've been at." Ivan said hopeful to get an answer for his question. Raguna glanced at Ivan, and Ivan could've sworn he saw a suspicious/cautious look sent his way. Ivan then came to the conclusion that it would take a long time to gain Raguna's trust.

*sigh* "I guess one part of the last 4 years wouldn't hurt. *Ivan wondered what Raguna meant by that* you see, *sigh* where I was, it was the equivalent, no sorry it was more than, torture. One of the things that they did to me was whipping me, here I thought people were past those days, but apparently not. I can't remember much from that day, but they wanted me to use something, or tell them something, I'm not sure. They did that everyday but I wouldn't give them what they wanted. I guess within time the punishments for not telling them escalated to the point where I was paralyzed. One day a girl saved me from a punishment but what they did to her was unforgivable, she didn't deserve that, much less because of me. *starts crying and notices that Matt was also paying close attention to his story* After some years she died, right in my arms, her last words were "Take care of my son for me, make sure you can escape this awful place, both of you." Then she died, her 6 year old son next to me, he started crying and shouting out for his mother. It broke my heart to see him suffer through losing the only person that ever cared for him. Of course I took care of him like his mother asked me to, and I am here now so I was able to escape, I took the child with me, but once I got to the outskirts of this town, we got separated by a beam of light. *cries even more, and his hands make fists* I failed his mother, she trusted me to keep him safe. *cries again*"

Throughout the 'story' both Ivan and Matt's expression changed. They ranged from; calm to surprised, surprised to disgusted, and finally disgusted to all out hate. Ivan and Matt couldn't believe that those things had happened. Then their expressions became mortified when they remembered that Raguna said it was, _Only one_ part of what had happened!

Ivan was almost planning how to murder the people that did all this and Matt was planning on how to send them to another realm. Ivan calmed down and put a hand on Raguna's shoulder, Matt followed suit by putting it on his other shoulder.

"I'm sorry Raguna, I shouldn't have asked…" Ivan started, tears gathering in his eyes.

"No, you aren't the one that did those things, you shouldn't be the one to apologize for their misdeeds. Actually I should be thanking you for asking that. *Ivan looks confused while Matt looks confused for a moment and then an understanding look crosses his face* If you hadn't asked that question, I would've never talked about that moment, I don't know why I decided to tell you about but I'm glad I did, it feels like a weight was lifted off my shoulders." Raguna explained, once he calmed down enough.

"Well, I'm glad I was able to help. *Ivan looks up* It's getting dark we should get home, I'll be here tomorrow, maybe we can get to know each other more? *Raguna starts to say something and Ivan raises his hand* I know what you're going to say, but this is a new you, Raguna. I would like to get to know the person you are now." Ivan suggests

"Yeah, I'd like that." Raguna's eyes softened more, almost returning to their former shape, they had become narrowed while he was saying what had happened in the past.

"Let me just call my cousin to tell him I won't go back home. Excuse of wanting to live in this place since I'm old enough to move out. Which I have wanted to do for a while, but I never found a good place or good reason to do so." Ivan ranted

"O-Ok...If you need a place to stay, I believe that there is a house near mine…" Raguna trailed off, unsure if the house was unoccupied or not.

"I would like to see that house. Also, what exactly do you do here? I can't believe that question never came up." Ivan asked, surprised.

"Well, If you follow me then you'll see." Raguna smiled a bit, a real smile, started walking and then looked back to Ivan, motioning him to follow, which Ivan did. Then they started making their way to Raguna's house/workplace.

 **You won't believe how much writer's block I had for this! Shout out again to MoonlightPrancing and my friend (You know who you are)**

 **Raguna: *cries* Why did that have to happen…**

 **Ivan: Raguna? *hugs Raguna* I'm right here I promise I won't let you get this hurt again. *Looks at me* And you! Just what was that for!**

 **I don't know! I've never written angst or hurt/comfort stories in my life, I'm not even sure how they are coming out like this(!), and it's related to the plot, so deal with it Ivan. *cries in the corner* Why did I just do that to one of my fav rune factory characters! *cries even more***

 **Raguna: Review please! (Puppy dog eyes)**

 **Ivan: Favorite**

 **?: and follow!**

 **Raguna and Ivan: Who are you!?**

 **?: I'm CWB's pointed protector from the middle dimension.**

 ***calms down* I have my own?**

 **?: Apparently, by the way, the names Sophie, nice to meet you!**

 **Nice to meet you too, Sophie!**

 **All of use: Please review! (Puppy dog eyes)**


	4. Meeting the Neighbors

**Sophie: *whistle* That was a long chapter! The last chapter was 7 pages long on word! Now…has anybody seen my charge?**

 **Raguna: Not really…**

 **Ivan: Nope. Anyhow:**

"Speaking"

/thoughts/

*things the characters are doing* (in case you didn't catch onto that)

((telepathy)) **((telepathy))**

 **Sophie: My charge, CWB, doesn't own anything! It's a fanfic, people, a fanfic. If she owned the actual thing, she wouldn't be writing this.**

* * *

 **Chapter 4: Meeting the Neighbors…**

* * *

Last Chapter: "Well, If you follow me then you'll see." Raguna started walking and then looked back to Ivan, motioning him to follow, which Ivan did. Then they started making their way to Raguna's house/workplace.

* * *

Raguna and Ivan headed over to Raguna's house. Nothing out of the ordinary happened, which Raguna was quite grateful for. Once they got to the house Ivan saw that there was a field with some crops on it and some tilled squares. Of course, Ivan didn't know this was Raguna's house so he didn't think much on it…until Raguna stopped walking.

"Well, this is my home and workplace." Raguna said.

"You run…a farm?" Ivan questioned, still trying to wrap his head around the idea.

*Raguna is quite for a moment* "Yeah, I do…It wasn't exactly my plan, then again, I didn't really have a plan, so it was better than nothing." Raguna explained.

"Oh, I guess it is then…you know how to farm? I know that you did have some gardening skills, but I don't think you ever grew anything other than flowers." Ivan said.

"Hmm…that explains why it felt natural to work with the land. Also, yes, I do know how to farm, Mist showed me how to." Raguna responded a bit awkwardly.

"Mist? You mean the girl with white hair and blue eyes?" Ivan asked.

"Yep, you know her?" Raguna asked.

"I kind of ran into her when I was going around a corner. She's a bit…um…weird." Ivan explained.

"Yes, she is." Raguna agreed. "She is nice though. She's the one that found me and took me to the clinic in this place. She also gave me her extra house and a field to work with." Raguna added.

"She does sound nice." Ivan said. "By the way, have you met anyone in this town?"

"Well I met the kids, they kind of ran into me, the one at the Church, and the woman that lives at the beach…She's a bit weird." Raguna said.

"You can say that again, I met them as well, I think those are the only people out here right now." Ivan mussed and Raguna silently agreed. After some time talking with each other, Ivan left to his newly bought house and Raguna entered his. They both went to sleep.

 **-The Next Day-**

Raguna had done his morning routine and was currently outside, watering his crops. Raguna and Ivan had agreed to meet up on his farm so that they could go introduce themselves to the villagers. Speaking of which, Ivan was walking up to his farm right now.

"Hey Raguna." Ivan said, once he was near enough.

"Hi, Ivan, let me just water the two squares I have left and we can head out." After Raguna did that, they went over to town. Their first stop was the inn.

"Wash your face, Zavier! You too, Tori! Quickly!" the women with a brown, pony tail styled hair that was behind the counter said. A kid that looked like he was going to pilot a helicopter came down stairs.

"But…I'm going to Carmite Cave right now, so I've no time to wash my face." The kid said and ran out. Then a girl with greenish hair and blue eyes came down, holding a book to her chest.

"I-I washed it th-three times already- Mummy! See you later." The girl said and walked out, as well.

"Those kids of mine!" The lady said. Raguna and Ivan shared a look that could be interpreted as the 'I-wasn't-expecting-this' look.

"What? Some customers were here? What if they saw me flapping about?" the lady behind the counter said.

/A bit late to worry about that!/ was Raguna and Ivan's thought.

 **((People are weird))** And Raguna couldn't help but agree on that statement. Raguna and Ivan walked up to the counter.

"You two are unfamiliar faces. Traveling through these parts? You're welcome to stay at my inn if you'd like." The lady, kindly, told Raguna and Ivan.

"Thanks but we already have a place to stay at." Raguna told the lady and Ivan nodded in agreement.

"Oh! So one of you is the one living in Mist's old house, right?" the lady asked.

"Yeah, that would be me. My name is Raguna." Raguna said.

"I'm living in a house next to his. My name is Ivan." Ivan said. (AN: Prepare to see this a lot this chapter, also prepare to see Raguna's as well. I may divide this chapter into two parts or more, now that I think about it)

"My name is Lady Ann, but you can call me Ann. I have a son and daughter about your ages, I'm sure they would love to meet the two of you!" Ivan noticed that Raguna flinched a little when Ann yelled; you have to be really trained to pick up on these things. The untrained eye can't notice that little amount of movement.

/Why did Raguna flinch? *mental face palm* the last four years of course! Why else would he react like that? I would like to know why he is scared, but after yesterday…I better just wait for him to open up to me and not ask unless it's really necessary for me to know./ (AN: Remember the events that happened last chapter? That was all in one day.)

They talked a bit more with her and then went to their next stop, which happened to be the…Bar.

The bartender had green clothes on and had blue-green hair.

"What's wrong?" the bartender asked.

The woman in front of him was, Lady Ann! Ivan and Raguna looked at each other.

"When did she get here?" Ivan asked.

"I don't know." Raguna responded.

 **((I call dibs on teleportation!))** Matt said happily, Raguna held in a laugh, although Raguna did admit that the idea didn't seem to bad, maybe a secret doorway to get here?

"Has Zavier been in? He missed work again and went off somewhere" Ann asked.

"No, he's not been here." The bartender responded.

"Oh, really? Let me know if you see him." Ann said.

"Sure will. Anyway, gonna stay for a drink?" The bartender replied.

"I'd love to, but I gotta go find Zavier. See you around." With that Lady Ann left the bar.

"Is the coast clear?" The bartender asked. Ivan and Raguna had 'What?' expressions on their faces. Then a kid with a pilot outfit comes down and their expression changes to the 'oh' expression.

"Yeah…Thanks, Emmett" The pilot dressed kid said.

"That's the last time I let you hide here!" The bartender, Emmett, they guessed, said.

"Okay, got it. Thanks. Catch you later!" then the kid leaves the bar as well.

 **((Well that was interesting…))**

((Not to mention, genius!)) *Matt wondered why Raguna would say that*

"So did Emmett just…" Ivan started.

"He was hiding Zavier in here all along. When Lady Ann asked if the kid was here, Emmett said no, but to make it more believable he asked if she wanted to stay. Genius!" Raguna whispered, explaining what had just happened, and unknowingly answering Matt's question. Ivan agreed with Raguna's explanation and they made their way to the Bartender.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Emmett, the owner of this bar." Emmett introduced himself.

"I'm Raguna, nice to meet you, Emmett." Raguna said.

"I'm Ivan, nice to meet you as well, Emmett." Ivan said.

"Ah, one of you is the guy that is living in Mist's old farm. Or so the rumor has it." Emmett said.

"Yeah that would be me, ha ha…" Raguna said

"And I live in a house next to his." Ivan said, and couldn't help but wonder if people noticed the similarities between them. Maybe they just thought it was a coincidence, maybe they didn't feel the need to point it out, or maybe a lot of weird things happened in this town. Your choice.

"It seems that she likes you a bit, too. Well, good luck!" Emmett said, this time Raguna didn't flinch, maybe it was just on some occasions? They talked a bit more with the bartender and then decided to go to the next stop, which was…Paris.

When they entered they saw a girl with blonde hair talking with an older male that also had blonde hair. Maybe they were daughter and father?

"Okay, line those up here next." The girl said.

The man turned towards a shelf and said, "Rosetta, should I put these here?"

"What!" Rosetta exclaimed. Again, Ivan noticed that Raguna did not flinch. "Daddy, those ones go here. How many times do I have to tell you!? You'd be lost without me!" the girl continued, and again, Raguna didn't flinch.

"So that really is her father?" Ivan asked.

"Apparently so…From the looks of it, their fighting over how to position things…" Raguna said.

 **((That's a bit dumb…but it is a shop. It should have a good display so that customers can find things easily. So I kind of see why the girl is upset.))**

((Yeah, you're right)) Raguna agreed. Ivan and Raguna walked up to the male.

"Good day, strangers. You're not from these parts, are you?" the blonde male said.

"No, my name is Raguna" Raguna said.

"Mine is Ivan." Ivan said.

"A pleasure to meet the two of you. I'm Jean. If you need any supplies, feel free to have a look at my wares." The male, Jean, said.

"Thank you" Raguna said, noticing that this place seemed to specialize in seeds. Raguna made a mental note to come here to buy more seeds, once he had the money. Ivan also made a mental note of it so that he could help Raguna buy the seeds, or maybe help Raguna on the farm.

"Say where are you two staying at?" Jean asked.

"I'm renting a farm outside of town." Raguna replied.

"I'm renting a house outside of town." Ivan replied.

"Oh-ho! Sounds like mist got a hold of you, Raguna. Ha ha ha!" Jean said, while Ivan was wondering if he had imagined Raguna flinching earlier. No, he didn't imagine it…maybe it was for another reason?

"Is something the matter with her?" Raguna asked, Ivan was also wondering that same thing.

"No, no. Of course not. Just a bit strange, is all. Sometimes it's hard to figure out if she's being serious or just spacing out." Jean said.

"Ha ha. Ivan and I haven't exactly met her yet, but I think I may know what you're talking about, from the time that she showed me how to farm." Raguna responded.

Then the two went to talk to the girl.

"Oh, hello. I don't think I know either of you. I'm Rosetta. What are you names?" the girl, Rosetta, asked.

"I'm Raguna" Raguna said.

"I'm Ivan." Ivan said.

"It's a pleasure to meet the two of you. Where are you guys staying?" Rosetta asked.

"I'm staying at Mist's farm." Raguna said, getting a bit tired of repeating the same thing.

"At a house next to Mist's farm." Ivan said, also getting tired of saying the same thing. They kept on talking with the two and then left to introduce themselves to everyone else. When they finished doing that, they decided to go at the plaza, but Raguna soon realized that going to the plaza was probably a bad idea.

* * *

 **Ok, forget it, I'm not going to make all the introductions! That would take an eternity to do, not only that, but it's also extremely tiring. So just imagine that they introduced themselves to the whole town.**

 **Sophie: There you are! Where have you been!**

 **Wondering why I made this chapter, that's where I've been.**

 **Ivan: Yes, did you come up with an answer to that?**

 **Raguna: Probably so she could have an excuse to introduce us to the other villagers and have a bit of a filler chapter.**

 **Raguna is exactly right.**

 **Sophie: *sigh* Don't forget to favorite**

 **Ivan: Follow**

 **Raguna: and Review!**

 **All of us: Have a great week and Happy holidays! (Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, in case I don't write a new chapter before that day. Psst sorry for the cliffy)**


	5. The Attack

**Hey guys! Welcome back to another chapter! I think I am going to add some characters to this, the towns people will come into this at some point, but I will be mostly focusing on the main/side characters.**

 **Raguna: So what's going to happen at the plaza?**

 **Nah ah ah, Raguna *Shakes finger* no spoilers!**

 **Ivan: CWB she doesn't own Rune Factory or anything else that isn't the plot or the OC's of the fanfic.**

 **Sophie: Anywho:**

"Speaking"

/thoughts/

((telepathy)) **((telepathy))**

 **Let's get this chapter started! *Everyone blows on the party thingy*(You know that thing that is really annoying because of the noise they make and you just use it so you can annoy every adult around you? I forgot the name of those things)**

 **Ok everyone be quiet! These things are super duper annoying!**

* * *

 **Chapter 5: The Attack**

* * *

Last chapter: "At a house next to Mist's farm." Ivan said, also getting tired of saying the same thing. They kept on talking with the two and then left to introduce themselves to everyone else. When they finished doing that, they decided to go at the plaza, but Raguna soon realized that going to the plaza was probably a bad idea.

* * *

When Ivan and Raguna got to the stone-paved, colorful, and surrounded by trees plaza, they sat down on a wooden bench and talked for a bit.

*roar* Raguna and Ivan jumped up from the bench and looked to where the noise had come from. They saw some sort of dragon, standing on two legs. They guessed it was some sort of cross between an orc and a dragon; a hybrid.

Ivan got a sword out from his pocket, or wherever you get things from in this world, and looked over at Raguna.

++++(Same Scene: Ivan POV)

I looked back at Raguna to tell him to let me handle the fighting, since I am the one with the weapon here, but what I see shocks me. Raguna seems to be paralyzed; he steps away from the monster in the equivalent of fear, but stays frozen on that spot. I look at his eyes and felt my breath get caught in my throat. What I saw was fear, no no, fear wasn't the word to describe it, Raguna was terrified of the monster. I can tell it's not because of the monster itself, because when I follow Raguna's line of sight, I notice he's staring at the symbol of the monster's clothes.

The symbol was some sort of brown and white eagle, with a white lab coat, eating a wooly with cat ears, that was surrounded by snakes. The symbol made no sense to me but judging by Raguna's reaction, he knows what this symbol means. I turn my attention on the monster, fully intending to rip it to shreds. Nothing that terrorizes Raguna that much can be a good, it must be connected to what has happened to him in the last four years.

I steady my sword and charge towards the monster. I slash its side and the stomach and it lets out an ear-splitting screech. Then it charges at me and I dodge the monster but I still got slashed on my right lower-arm. I hiss at the stinging pain that feels as if I had been stung by multiple bees, each a second apart. Even though it hurts to use that arm, I steady my sword once again and see the monster making its way towards a terrified Raguna.

"Raguna!" I yelled out to him. Raguna seemed to snap out of it when I called out and he dodged the monsters knife and kneed it so hard on the stomach that the monster was sent flying and it landed on its back, a few feet away from me, with a screechy groan. I took that change to run up to it and stab it with my sword, right in the gut. Then the monster transformed into particles, formed a ball of yellow light, and flew back to the forest it came from.

Raguna still looks terrified but he seems to have calmed down a bit. Raguna slowly descends and sits on the ground, hugging his knees to his chest. I'm suddenly reminded of how Raguna acted after those kids beat him up. I put away my sword and slowly walk up to him and put my hand on his shoulder.

++++(Same Scene: Raguna POV)

"Raguna, are you hurt?" I hear Ivan question.

/Funny, he didn't ask if I was fine, why is it that everybody asks that when the answer is obvious?/

"N-no I'm fine, just a bit shaken up." If Ivan hadn't been here I would've been a goner. I notice that I start to shake a bit and try to control my reactions but I can't seem to do it. I just subconsciously trust Ivan, and I want to know why I do. Where do I know him from? Who is he? What is he to me? A friend, best friend, family? I suddenly feel Ivan lift me and sit me on the bench where we were sitting just before this mess started. Ivan sits down next to me and starts…petting(?) my head. Why? Although I won't lie, the repeated motion is calming, my body leans into the touch without me wanting to. Rang, reactions, and yes, I just replaced it with an R. I made a promise to not swear or say bad words for the rest of my life. Also, how does Ivan know how to calm me down? Only three other people have done this for me and that's because they figured out how to do it. Ivan just started doing it. Maybe we were close as kids? Best friends and possible family member are still open options.

Before I knew it, I had calmed down completely. That's probably the fastest that I have ever calmed down.

"Raguna…Are you okay now?" Ivan asked softly, watching the intensity and tone of his voice in case I got scared again. Somehow that knowledge makes me feel happy but I can't let myself trust him, no matter how much I really want to, I can't allow myself to trust him. The last four years have taught me not to trust easily.

"Yeah, I'm fine…thanks for helping me." Ivan looks confused as to why I'm thanking him but then his lips form a small smile. He must've understood what I was thanking him for.

"No problem Raguna. Glad I could help." His smile gets bigger and he ruffles my brown hair.

"hey!" I yell while we both laugh. I fix my hair and we both get up from the bench. I had a couple bandages in my pocket so I took them out and bandaged Ivan's arm. He seemed surprise to see me do that but let me do it either way, and I was glad he let me help.

*Falling sound* A sound that's similar to how a military plane would sound when falling reaches our ears and we look up to see, two people falling from a portal.

++++(Same Scene: Normal POV)

 _CRASH!_ The two people landed right in front of Raguna and Ivan. Both of the strangers groan and one looks up at Raguna and Ivan, focusing on Raguna after a while. The stranger looking at Raguna has blonde hair and light blue eyes, with some freckles. The stranger is also wearing really peculiar clothing, mostly made of cotton and…is that, a vegetable!?

The other stranger, which landed on top of the blonde one, has flaming red hair and crimson pink eyes. His clothing style is really similar to that of Kardia's. (AN: Look at Raguna's pic, the red haired guy is wearing something similar to it) He also decided to focus on Raguna and pay no mind to Ivan.

That is when Raguna noticed who they were. /No way! They can't be! I thought they were in the other towns./

"Konbanwa, Raguna!" The two strangers said, and that erased all doubt from Raguna's mind, while leaving Ivan a bit lost since he didn't know what Konbanwa meant, but one look at Raguna, Ivan could tell that Raguna did know. Raguna was shocked but it's a good kind of shock, unlike the shock Raguna had from the monster. The only way Ivan could tell it wasn't the bad kind of shock was because Raguna's eyes expressed joy and happiness.

"Konbanwa, you two. Ivan meet…" Raguna replied, and started to introduce them.

* * *

 ***Laughs* I know you guys LOVE when I end the chapters like that. Don't try to deny it.**

 **Sophie: *sigh* Why haven't you uploaded in so long?**

 **Life happens, and I have been playing other games, plus I've been reading Fanfics from other fandoms like Yugioh and Vanguard.**

 **Raguna: Please Review**

 **Ivan: Favorite**

 **Sophie: And Follow**

 **All of us: You can still Review if you aren't part of ! Have a great day and enjoy the cliffie!**

 **Can anyone guess who these two are?**

 **Also cookies to anyone that knows the meaning of konbanwa. It means Good Evening in Japanese. How was the bonding with Raguna and Ivan? I was a bit stumped with this chapter but I think it turned out fine. I completely changed the orginal title of the chapter since by then end of it "The Attack" made a lot more sense. *laughs***

 **Did you guys like the chapter?**


	6. Some Explaning

**Welcome to chapter 6! I hope you guys enjoyed the last chapter!**

 **Raguna: Why? Why do you torture me so much?**

 **Sophie: That's because it's part of the story, do you think she likes torturing you?**

 **Ivan: It definitely seems like she does. *mumbles about CWB torturing Raguna***

 **I DON'T LIKE TORTURING HIM!**

 **Sophie: Anyhow,**

"Speaking"

/thoughts/

((telepathy)) **((telepathy))**

 **Raguna and Ivan: Let's get this chapter started!**

* * *

 **Chapter 6: Some Explaining**

* * *

Last chapter: "Konbanwa, you two. Ivan meet…" Raguna replied, and started to introduce them.

* * *

"Ivan meet Micah and Kyle. I got to know them 4 years ago." Raguna finished the introduction.

"Micah, Kyle, meet Ivan. I met him a few days ago here in the town of Kardia." Raguna said to the new people.

"Hello Ivan!" Micah and Kyle said.

"Hello Micah, Kyle." Ivan responded. An awkward silence fell upon them for a few minutes, each lost in their own thoughts.

++++(Same Scene: Ivan POV)

Once I said hello to them silence feel above us. The others are thinking about something, that's for sure. I am wondering who exactly these two are. Micah and Kyle, was it? Raguna seems happy to see them, so they can't be that bad. Hmm…what does that symbol mean though? Raguna said he met these guys 4 years ago. Wasn't that the time he does remember (?), the time that he wanted to forget? Does that mean that these guys may have gone through the same thing Raguna has gone through? Been in the same place he's been?

I take a closer look at the strangers and notice their eyes aren't like a normal kids eyes. They hold a lot more wisdom than anyone else that I've seen. I look at Raguna, out of curiosity, and notice that he has the same type of eyes as these two strangers. Raguna, Micah, and Kyle have guards up around them, to keep from people getting to close to them. Either because they are afraid of getting someone hurt, or afraid of being hurt by someone else. These three must've been together through all of their problems, because Raguna let down his guard, even if it was just a little bit, when he saw them.

++++(Same Scene: Raguna POV)

I couldn't believe that Micah and Kyle are here. I have surely missed them a lot. I wonder why they are here though.

I notice Ivan looking at them and then at me. He must've put together where I know them from. He does seem surprised or thoughtful about something though, I wonder what it is.

++++(Same Scene: Micah POV)

Ouch that fall hurt. Though I am surprised to see Raguna here. I wonder why he's in Kardia. Kyle and I came here for business purposes, but why's Raguna here? Also who is this Ivan guy? Should I let Raguna be around him? He might hurt Raguna after all. I won't let that happen in my watch.

++++(Same Scene: Kyle POV)

Huh? Fancy meeting Raguna here. I thought that Raguna had gone to hide away from us or something. We aren't too crazy though. We're just a bit weird. We need to catch up with Raguna after Micah and I are done with the business we have to do here.

Ivan…hmm, should I let him near Raguna? Raguna does seem to be calm around him. I wonder who Ivan is, and why do Ivan and Raguna look alike? Well, if Raguna wants to be around him, then who am I to stop him?

++++(Same Scene: Normal POV)

"So…Raguna what are you doing here?" Micah asked, once he and Kyle had gotten off of the floor.

"Well, I ended up here, decided to live here because I had nothing else planned, and met Ivan on my first day here."

"Oh, well, that's great. We're here because we have some business with the Mayor of this town." Kyle said.

"The Mayor? What would you want with him?" Raguna inquired

"Well, the old-timer, owes our towns some favors." Then Micah whispered in Raguna's ear, "Not to mention…that he knows the leader of _that_ group." Micah finished and Raguna's eyes widened.

/Why is Raguna surprised. He seems to be split in-between fear and disbelief, but why? What did Micah tell him?/ Ivan thought.

"Also, I don't mean to be rude, but…Who exactly are you Ivan? You do realize that now that we are here in Kardia, we are going to be suspicious of you being near Raguna, right?" Kyle questioned and Micah nodded his consent.

"Kyle! Micah!" Raguna scolded and continued, "I was the one that let him get close to me, if anything _I'm_ the one you should be mad at! Ivan has helped me quite a lot during my stay here and I would appreciate it if you wouldn't chase him away! Not to mention that he's from the past that I don't remember…" Raguna exclaimed, lowering his voice towards the end.

Micah and Kyle were shocked since Raguna had never raised his voice at them before, but they weren't the only ones shocked. Ivan was shocked as well, he didn't think that Raguna would've stood up for him, since he seems so timid and all. To say that Ivan was surprised would be the understatement of the century, but he still smiled a bit at the thought of Raguna standing up for him.

"Well, um, okay, Raguna. *beeping sound is heard, Micah looks at watch* Oh, right, we have to get going to the meeting with the mayor. See you sometime later Raguna, we need to go. Sayonara Raguna and Ivan." Micah said and Kyle said the last sentence as well.

"Guys mate!(AN: Not Mate like Mating, this is a Japanese word) Gomenasia…I didn't mean to yell at you guys. Can you forgive me?" Raguna asked.

"Of course Raguna, were not mad. We should be the ones apologizing, we were out of line after all. Ivan we're sorry for the way we acted." Kyle and Micah said.

"It's alright. You were only looking after Raguna after all, I appreciate that actually. I'm happy he has someone else that cares for him." Ivan replied with a smile and warm eyes. Raguna was surprised that Ivan had said that, but smiled after a while.

((Ivan really is a weird character…anyone else would've been really mad at them.)) Raguna thought, unaware he had uses the link.

 **((Raguna…are you okay?))**

((Matt? Where have you been? It's been a while since I've heard from you.))

 **((Yeah, I'll explain later, okay?))**

((Okay, if you say so)) Raguna thought back to Matt and went back to his friends and Ivan.

"Well we really gotta meet up with the mayor. See 'ya later alligators!" Kyle laughed and ran off, Micah followed not to long after, laughing as well.

"Wait…why was Micah wearing a vegetable?" Raguna mumbled to himself.

"They seem like good friends." Ivan suddenly commented.

"They are…believe me, they are" Raguna said, thinking about the past.

++++(Another Scene: Normal POV)

Raguna and Ivan were currently in Raguna's house after a walk around the village.

"Hey Raguna, it's probably not my place to ask, but, what did the symbol mean?" As soon as these words left Ivan's mouth, Raguna froze up.

"Of course, you don't have to answer that." Ivan finished, and waited for Raguna to decide.

*sigh* "I'll tell you…but, I won't tell you everything there is to know about it, or why I fear the organization behind that symbol." Raguna replied and Ivan agreed, some information was better than none at all. Matt was also paying attention to this explanation, even though Matt had the feeling that he already knew what it was.

++++(Same Scene: Ivan POV)

I heard Raguna agree to tell me some information about it, and sat down on the couch, it was comfy by the way, but that's not the most important thing right now, is it? I also feel like instead of two of us, there are three of us. I looked around and saw something, but it was gone as fast as it came, though I can still sense it here. Was it some sort of person? The silhouette sure seemed like that of a person.

I heard Raguna sigh as he took a seat I front of me and started to explain.

"Where do I start? *Thinks for some time* Alright, the symbol was a brown and white eagle, with a white lab coat on, eating a wooly with cat ears that was surrounded by snakes." Raguna described it. Raguna seemed to be a bit scared, but not as much as seeing it in front of him, like earlier today.

"I will tell you about the eagle and snakes first. The eagle is a predator and so is the snake. In this case the snakes are going to be the eagles' next meal, since they are prey for the eagle. The wooly being surrounded by snakes; means that it has been caught and has no escape, it just has to wait for its death. The lab coat on the eagle means that he predator is a scientist or something of that sort. The wooly having cat ears is a mixture between animals, which means experiments. They experiment on the prey and then throw it away like it left over food. The play with their prey, aka eating it, and then throw it away when they can't play with their prey anymore." Raguna finished his explanation. I sit there in silence, trying to wrap my head around it, and trying to figure out what this has to do with Raguna. He mentioned experiments, but Raguna seems completely normal to me.

Raguna already said he would only explain the symbol and not why he feared the ones behind it. Could they have done something to Raguna? He had mentioned that memory about people wanting him to use some sort of power…could they be from the same organization, or are they completely different people? I won't ask Raguna since I don't want to hurt him by asking or bring back any bad memories.

++++(Same Scene: Normal POV)

Raguna and Ivan had finished talking about the symbol and moved on to talk about more cheerful things.

"Wait really!?" Raguna asked

"Yeah, I always hated that teacher; she would yell at the students and give them a really hard time. She was apparently mad at me for something and I, being a good student of course, set up a little prank for her after school. It's the one that once someone opens up the door the bucket on top of it would fall. Since she's the teacher and has to enter before any of the students, it was the perfect plan. She was one of these people that loved to wear too much make-up so when she went in to the classroom and got a bucket of water and eggs thrown on her, the make-up was all over the place. She ran off crying and yelling, I quote, "This school is haunted and everyone in this whole franken school is against me. The ghost will kill us all." *Ivan quoted while copying the frantic hand movements of the teacher* end quote. The principal found out who did it later, but he actually congratulated me and gave me a medal for driving her away from the school. The other students had laughed their butts off for a whole month. Even until today, that story hasn't been lived down by the ones who saw it *laughs*."

"Wow, it almost seems like I was there, actually I think I was there…Oh well, it's still funny anyway. *laughs*" Raguna said. It was getting a bit late so Raguna offered Ivan the option to stay at his house and Ivan accepted it. Ivan went to sleep on the couch and Raguna on his bed, even though Raguna had practically begged Ivan to sleep on the bed instead. Raguna learned fast that Ivan could be pretty stubborn.

Raguna was currently sitting on the bed, thinking about things, when the hologram version of Matt appeared on the edge of his bed.

((Hey Matt.))

 **((Hello Raguna, are you feeling alright?))**

((Yeah, I'm fine.))

 **((Raguna about the symbol…))** Matt trailed off, unsure of how to word his question.

((Matt, I don't want to talk about it.))

 **((It's not that. Earlier today when the monster attacked the two of you, I-I tried to get through to you but you wouldn't answer. So I tried to force your side of the link open so that I could get you to move away from the monster, but I was hit by a memory…a memory that involved a lot of needles, serums/potions, and machinery. I wasn't even aware that the link had the ability to do that! Raguna I'm sorry I couldn't do anything to help! I couldn't handle the feeling coming off of the memory, so I backed off and let Ivan handle it. I'm sorry that I am so useless, Raguna.))** Matt lifted his legs to his chest, put his heads to his knees and started crying.

((You're not useless Matt! You've helped me several times, maybe not physically, but mentally. You've been there this whole time, and listen to me when I need someone to talk to. You're the best friend I could ever ask for Matt. I know you won't always be there since you have a life of your own in your world, but you take the time to talk to me and look after me. Your anything but useless Matt.)) Raguna thought to Matt, unknowingly having gone closer to Matt.

"You're not useless Matt. You're my support and I'm yours, don't hesitate to come to me if you ever need help, Matt." Raguna whispered, and laid a hand on Matt's shoulder for support. Matt smiled at him and wiped away his tears. Matt saw the time and said he had to go back to his world so that he could sleep.

 **((** **O-yasuma nasai** **, Raguna-san.))**

"Goodnight to you as well, Matt-san." Raguna said his goodbye and went to sleep, not aware that he had been overheard.

/hmm…so I was right. There was someone else here; Raguna seems to know this person. Who exactly is this person? And what is that language the Raguna was speaking in, earlier today. Raguna seems to trust this person, so unless this person hurts Raguna, I don't see anything wrong with him being around./ Ivan thought and went to the dreamland of pranks.

* * *

 **Okay! That's a long chapter! I hope you guys liked this one. I have a few questions,**

 **What do you think of Matt?**

 **What do you think of the organization behind the symbol?**

 **Is the humor good? I want to balance this story out after all.**

 **Who guessed it was Micah and Kyle?**

 **Now time for translations:**

 **Sayonara(Not used to often in Japanese)=Good bye**

 **Mate=Wait**

 **Gomenasia=I'm sorry**

 **O-yasuma nasai(Formal way)= Good night**

 **The San at the ending is showing politeness, I used san because I still don't understand the difference between san, chan, and kun.**

 **Also Ivan now knows about Matt. Is that good or bad? What do you think is going to happen?**

 **Give me some humor ideas please! I need help with that, was the humor in this chapter good? And in the story over all?**

 **How was the Matt and Raguna bonding? I figured since Ivan and Raguna had theirs, it was about time Matt and Raguna got one.**

 **Disclaimer(It's late but you can't say I didn't put it in, lol): If I owned RF I would make one with all the RF Main Characters together. But that clearly ain't happening, is it?**


	7. Troublesome Call

**Hello there reader! Sorry I haven't written in such a long time, I've been a bit busy.**

 **Ivan: So what's going to happen on this chapter?**

 **You'll be going somewhere…**

 **Ivan: With Raguna?**

 **Raguna: Knowing her…**

 **We'll see Ivan…We'll see**

 **Sophie: Anyhow;**

"Speaking"

\thoughts\

((telepathy)) **((telepathy))**

Underline is another language!

 **Ivan, Raguna, and Sophie: Onwards with the story!**

* * *

 **Chapter 7: Troublesome Call**

* * *

The morning light shone in through the curtains, the birds were singing, the water was dancing, something was buzzing…wait, buzzing?

BZZ BZZ BZZ

Raguna woke up from his sleep to hear the alarm ringing…sweet sweet life on the farm! Raguna sat up on the bed and looked around.

"Um, Matt…What are you doing?"Raguna asked. Matt looked terrified and Raguna was confused as to why.

"What is that sound Raguna! Is it a monster of some sort?" Matt asked Raguna.

"A-A monster? No! It's an alarm clock! Here, see?" Raguna showed Matt the alarm clock and pressed down on the top to turn it off. Matt seemed to calm down quite a bit after Raguna turned it off.

"Alarm clock?"

"Yeah, you set it to a certain time, like 6:00am and it starts ringing at that time. It's to help wake you up." Raguna explained

"Oh, so it's like the Parrots that we have." Matt compared the alarm clock, making Raguna confused.

"Parrot?" Raguna asked Matt

"Yes. They fly to our beds and keep repeating 'it's time to wake up' in our ears until we wake up." Matt explained

"That's gotta be annoying." Raguna murmured

"Yeah, it sort of is." Raguna then went into the kitchen to cook some breakfast. Some minutes of comfortable silence later, Ivan walked in.

"Morning, Raguna." Ivan greeted

"Good morning, Ivan." Raguna greeted back to him.

\It seems that Raguna has quite a bit of manners in him if he's doing the formal greeting. I wonder where he's been for him to learn this stuff.\

"The food is done; you can help yourself to whatever you wish, Ivan." Raguna brought Ivan back to reality.

"Oh thanks! You didn't have to cook though; I could've bought something at the Inn." Ivan said.

"None-sense, you're my guest, it's only normal to be a good host and make sure the guest are well cared for." Raguna off-handedly commented.

"Yeah, I guess it is." \Raguna didn't learn these things from us, that much is certain. We never had to worry about serving the guests ourselves; we never learned how to cook either. Where has he been all this time?\ Ivan served himself some food and sat down at the table, thinking things over a bit more. The food was garlic tasting eggs with sweet mouth-watering bacon, some blueberry pancakes, and naturally made orange juice.

Raguna watched as Ivan took his first bite, he hoped that the food was, at the very least, decent. Ivan eyes widened comically.

"This is great! Where did you learn how to cook like this?" Ivan inquired

"I'm glad you liked it. *small pleased smile* I was actually thought some things by Micah and Kyle but, I mostly picked things up here in there." Raguna responded

"This is amazing though, even more amazing if you're mostly self-taught." Ivan praised and Raguna blushed

"I-It can't be that good…" Raguna stammered and casted his eyes to his hands, his features adapting a far-away look.

\He's modest…and doesn't seem to take compliments to well. Raguna, I'm sorry I failed you…failed to protect you, keep you safe, and give you something resembling a family, I'm sorry Raguna.\ Ivan almost showed his emotion through that though but, he managed to school his features into a happy smile.

"It's good, trust me on that one." Ivan noticed Raguna smiled, it filled Ivan with a sense of satisfaction that the smile was because of what he said.

"Thanks Ivan." Raguna said timidly.

BRR BRR BRR

Ivan took a phone out of his pocket and read who the caller was; it was labeled as 'DAD'. Ivan let out a small sigh.

"I need to take this call, Raguna, may I go take it outside." Ivan said.

"Of course." With that Ivan bowed his head to Raguna and went outside.

++++(Ivan's POV)

I walk outside and take the call.

" _Ivan! What took you so long to pick up!"_

*sigh* "I was with someone else, dad."

" _I don't care! If I call, you pick up, is that understood!"_

"Yes, _dad_. What do you want!"

" _What? Can't I call my son?"_

"No! Now what are you going to ask me?"

" _Have you found your brother?"_

I stay silent for a few seconds, when I answer him my voice is calm but, really? I was silently seething! How dare he—

"No, I haven't found my brother, father. Maybe I wouldn't have to go looking for him if you'd actually done what you were supposed to do! You've got the gall to ask me that!?" I responded, steadily raising my voice.

" _I'm your father, Ivan! Show some more respect! Now, why haven't you found your brother yet!"_

"Respect? You were disowned by your own family! I'll give you my respect and trust when you earn it back! My brother has been missing since he was 8 years old, only 3 years ago did you even show an interest in that fact! Do you really think I would tell you even if I did find him?" I asked incredulously.

" _I am his father! I have the right to know!"_ that sentence ticked me off.

"NO! You didn't show any interest when he disappeared, _you_ didn't _care_ about where he was at the time! Only three years ago did you even ask where he was! You are _not_ my father and never will be! I'm willing to give you a second chance but not like this! You were never a father to us! I'm glad that our cousin and uncle disowned you from the family; you're a disgrace to the family name! Do you really think I don't know about what happened mother? I HATE you!" With that, I hung up the phone. I took a deep breath to calm myself down.

BRR BRR BRR

Ugh…You've got to be kidding me, again! I look down at the caller ID, ready to yell at him again, when I noticed that it didn't say 'DAD', it said 'COUSIN'. My anger mellows down and I take the call.

" _Ivan, are you alright! You usually don't take too long to pick up, are you hurt? If you are I can send a—"_

*small laugh* "No-no, I'm fine, I promise. Thanks for your concern cousin. I was just reeling in my anger that's all." I explained, talking to my cousin always seemed to calm me down.

" _Anger? What happened? Did someone try to fight you or something? Poor person, I think the whole kingdom knows about your wrath by now. *laugh*"_

"Ha-ha, very funny cousin. It was father-"

" _What did_ he _want"_ the venom in my cousins voice surprised me, I don't ever remember hearing him sound like that.

"To know if I found my brother." That simple answer had a not-so-simple reaction.

" _Why that base-turd-it how_ dare _he show any concern for his youngest son! That same son was gone for 4 years and he didn't give a care in the world. The dragons help me…if I see him I will cut his head off!"_ Then he got to the really colorful insult list. Let's not dwell on that though, right?

"I don't think the dragons would stop you, in-fact, Firesome would be more than happy to help you burn him alive." A moment of silence on the other end of the line…he isn't considering what I just said, right?

" _flipitty-flop with the pancake, that's sadistic! I like it!"_ I can tell he's adding that one to the list of torture. I love my cousin and uncle to death but, you just don't get on either of their bad sides, it never ends well.

" _Anyhow, Ivan, I need you to come back home for a bit. I need your help! Please come back."_ He sounded desperate; I couldn't just pass this one off.

"What's going on?" I said, worried for my cousin.

" _I'm not sure who sent this but, it's some sort of threat. I need help tracking the person, the threat has been translated a bit. It was in some kind of code, but even the translated part is in some sort of code, it doesn't make any sense. Please come quick! I need extra hands on this one."_ A threat? To my cousin? This can't end well. I must go back, I need to tell Raguna first though.

"Alright, I'll be right there, just give me a day to get there."

" _Thank you, Ivan"_

"No problem cousin!" With that I hung up and went to find Raguna.

++++(Normal POV)

Raguna was in the living room when Ivan entered, he looked troubled, no matter how much Ivan tried to hide that fact.

"Ivan? What's wrong?" Raguna asked.

"Nothing's wrong Raguna. I just need to go back to the capital for a while, you don't mind if I leave right? I promise I'll come back." Ivan said. Raguna studied Ivan a bit before answering.

"Of course you can go, I won't mind. You shouldn't worry too much about me. *Ivan looked surprised that Raguna had noticed that he was worried about Raguna* Micah and Kyle are here, so if anything should happen I can always count on them for help. I have a phone, so you could contact me that way. It's a problem at home right? You should put that first, I'm not in any danger right now, I haven't survived these past years with no survival/danger skills, after all." Ivan was surprised at Raguna's ability to land on the right thing. Ivan hadn't mentioned that it was a problem at home, yet Raguna still managed to pick that one up. Ivan and Raguna exchanged phone numbers.

"Thanks Raguna, I'll make sure to call. Stay safe alright. I think it'd be a good idea to let Micah and Kyle stay with you." Ivan saw that Raguna seemed to be considering it.

"You're right; Kyle, Micah, and I have a lot of catching up to do anyway."Raguna mused over. I wondered how long Raguna had known Micah and Kyle.

After some time Raguna and Ivan said goodbye to each other and Ivan went to the capital. Raguna went to sit on the couch and hoped that Ivan wouldn't be too late. Whatever was happening at Ivan's home, it left Raguna with a nasty taste of dread.

 **((He'll be alright Raguna))**

((I can only hope that you're right Matt…))

 **((You feel it too don't you?))**

((The feeling of dread in the air? Yeah, yes I do, and I don't like it one bit))

 **((Me neither but, maybe inviting the other two can form some kind of comfort?))**

((Maybe…What I can't believe is that the mayor of this town knows a leader from _that_ organization.))

With that last thought, Raguna went out to do farm work and walk around town. Who knew? Maybe he'd bump into Micah and Kyle along the way. The day went one with Raguna getting a fishing rod and trying to fish, selling the fish, buying seeds, more farming, and talking to Matt. All in all, it was a pretty good day, that would be true if the feeling of foreboding would leave Matt and Raguna alone!

* * *

 **1,892 words without counting this part! I tried to make it longer than most of the other chapters.**

 **Raguna: How was this chapter? Also, what happened with father?**

 **Ivan*muttering*: You don't wanna know…**

 **Shopie: Interesting chap..**

 **So, did you guys like it? What do you think about the dialogues here? Matt, poor Matt was terrified! What about the phone conversations that Ivan had. Any questions about those?**

 **Sophie: So, Ivan's leaving…I wonder what's wrong back home! A threat they said?**

 **Raguna: Ivan, if you need help deciphering the threat, just let me know! I'm more perceptive than I seem you know!**

 **Ivan: I'll keep that in mind Raguna, I just don't want to drag you into this mess.**

 **All of us: Favorite, Follow, and Review please! *puppy dog eyes***


	8. Rules Laid Down!

**Hello there guys! Welcome to chapter 8.**

 **Sophie: She's planning on changing POV in this chapter, so look out for that one!**

 **I think this chapter will be based mostly around Ivan, or, half Raguna and half Ivan, who knows? *Shrugs***

 **Raguna: Would it be in vain to ask what will happen?**

 **Pretty much, haha!**

 **Ivan: Anyhow:**

"Speaking"

 _Thoughts_

((Telepathy)) **((Telepathy))**

 **Raguna and Ivan: Let's start this chapter!**

 **Wait!**

 **Ivan: What?**

 **Disclaimer…**

 **Raguna: Right!**

 **Sophie: My charge doesn't own anything except for the plot of this story. I feel like I said that differently…oh well, you guys know the drill, right?**

* * *

 **Chapter 8: Rules Laid Down!**

* * *

Last chapter: With that last thought, Raguna went out to do farm work and walk around town. Who knew? Maybe he'd bump into Micah and Kyle along the way. The day went one with Raguna getting a fishing rod and trying to fish, selling the fish, buying seeds, more farming, and talking to Matt. All in all, it was a pretty good day, which would be true if the feeling of foreboding would leave Matt and Raguna alone!

* * *

Raguna walked around town a bit more and stopped at the plaza. He sat on the bench and began to think of what had happened the other day.

 _That monster and the logo of the organization…I don't want to get Ivan into this mess but, if it continues to happen, I'm going to have to tell him sooner or later…_

Raguna closed his eyes and tried to relax after his day of work.

 _They're coming after us again…can't they give us a break? I wonder how they'll get to us this time. They can't just kidnap us since we're pretty known in the business world. It would create chaos if we were to just disappear. Then again, we're not known in this kingdom's business world._

Raguna heard some footsteps approach and he kept himself from tensing.

"Ossu!" A voice called out and Raguna opened his eyes.

"Ossu." Raguna replied and relaxed, since there wasn't an imminent threat waiting to happen. The people that had approached were Raguna's best friends, Micah and Kyle. (AN: Ossu, greeting in Japanese between close male friends.)

"What's up, Raguna? Just chilling?" Micah asked.

"Yeah, I had nothing better to do." Kyle and Micah stare at Raguna with the 'I don't believe that one bit' look. Raguna sighed and looked defeated.

"Alright, I was thinking about the organization. They attacked Ivan and me in this plaza a couple of days ago." Raguna explained.

"Really? They're at it again!?" Micah asked, stunned.

"Yeah."

"Speaking of Ivan, where is he?" Kyle asked.

"Trouble sprouted back at his home and he had to leave." Raguna said.

"Trouble? Why do I suddenly feel a feeling of dread in the air?" Kyle asked.

"It's not dread Kyle. It's more like…uneasiness." Micah corrected.

"You've got that right, Micah." Raguna agreed.

"Did he say what sort of trouble it was?" Kyle asked.

"No, and it's not my place to know." Raguna gave Kyle a pointed look. "Besides, I'm not part of his family, so I don't have a right to know either."

"He's right Kyle, Ivan's family is his concern, not Raguna's." Micah added.

"Talking about families…Will we ever find ours?" Kyle wondered.

"I don't know." Micah and Raguna said.

"Question; How are you guys here? I thought you were back at our kingdom." Raguna asked.

"Our? More like yours, Raguna." Kyle said.

"None-sense, you guys put in the same amount of work I did into re-building that kingdom. What I find funny is that the other kingdoms have no idea of our existence." Raguna retorted.

"Anyhow, yes, we were in the kingdom but, we decided to talk to the mayor of this town." Micah said.

"We took one of the teleportation cars but, once we got here, it threw us out and we landed on the ground. The car stopped suddenly which is what caused the sound of the crash." Kyle explained.

*Sigh* "I worked so hard on those teleportation cars and made them as simple as possible so that anyone that has our kingdom's card can use them." Raguna looked at Micah and Kyle, "So, do I get an explanation on how you messed up the teleportation system that the cars have?" Raguna finished.

"We don't really know how to explain that one…" Micah said.

"Great." Raguna deadpanned.

"Anyway…Want to hang…" Kyle was cut off by a voice behind the trio.

"Hello there Kyle, Micah, and who might this be?" Raguna looked at the newcomer that talked and slightly tensed. It was the mayor, the one who supposedly knows a leader from the organization that the trio escaped from.

"Oh, hello there Mayor Godwin, this is an old friend of ours, we were just catching up with him." Kyle cryptically said.

 _Oh, I feel the trust…I don't think they're going to trust me anytime soon. I can't fault them for that though, since the root of the 'no trust' problem seems to rely in me knowing the leader of the organization they mentioned to me. The kid they're talking to seemed to have tensed when he saw me…I wonder if he has the same theory that Kyle and Micah have. The problem with that is that…I think the kid lives here…There were two new residents and he didn't come with Micah and Kyle, which makes it bad because he wouldn't trust me…and I'm the mayor of this town, not a good match at all._ Godwin thought.

Raguna stared at the Mayor the whole time. _I can't believe this; I live in the town of one of the people that might have ties with the other organization. Well, I can tell that Kyle and Micah put their mental shields up. We tend to let them down when it's just the three of us. We also let them down with other people we trust but, we still keep our guard up, even around them._

"My name is Raguna, it's nice to meet you Mayor Godwin." Raguna said, respectfully. _Not really nice though, would love to be anywhere but here, right about now._

"Oh, you're the guy that moved into Mist's old farm, aren't you?" Godwin asked.

"That would be me, yes." Raguna responded.

There was a moment of silence between them, Micah and Kyle started looking back and forth between them, as if waiting for something to happen.

"You know the leader of the organization?" Raguna asked, cutting straight to the point.

 _Ah, so I was right, he does have the same idea as Micah and Kyle. Probably thinks I will try to do something to him._

"Yes, I do, but, I don't share the same views as they do. They think that the people should evolve into more powerful beings but, I'm content with just being who I am and watching everybody thrive to do the best they can. Without those values, Kardia wouldn't be what it is today." Godwin explained.

Raguna looked down slightly at the hand that had his bracelet, which was glowing a bit but, only he could see the glow. You see, there's an interesting gimmick to the bracelet, when Matt is in the room with the bracelet connection; the bracelet had a slight glow to it, when he wasn't in the room; it would just have its natural shine. It was really hard to tell the difference between each one of the 'settings', for lack of a better term.

((What do you think Matt? I believe he might be telling the truth. I'm not feeling anything except honesty from him. It's pretty hard to fake that.)) Raguna thought to Matt.

 **((Yes, you're right; it is hard to fake the feeling of honesty. He may be telling the truth. I'd say, "Give him a chance" but, it's your choice Raguna. If you think you can trust him, go for it. If not, tell him where to go.))** Raguna could FEEL the amusement that flooded the link and accompanied the last line.

"Do you mind if I ask why you guys dislike that organization?" Godwin asked, hoping that he wasn't crossing the line.

"Now wait just a second, what gives you the right to…" Kyle was cut off.

"I believe he was asking Raguna, not you, Kyle." Micah admonished.

"What is it with people cutting me off!?" Kyle started to rant, Micah keeping him distracted from the talk Raguna was having.

"That, Mayor, would be because they're a bunch of idiots that like experimenting on people that they abduct from their homes." Raguna said, mysteriously.

The Mayor stood there, blinking at Raguna, until the words finally registered.

"They do WHAT!?" Godwin exclaimed, disgusted that a person would do something like that to another person.

"Experiment on people they abduct." Raguna replied, enjoying the look of horror on the Mayors face. _The feeling of hate, could he really be against the organizations ideals? He did seem pretty horrified at the thought of them experimenting on other people._

"Raguna, since you are going to stay in Kardia, I would like to talk to you. Get to know each other…" Godwin trailed off, the "So you don't have to be afraid of me" part, not needing to be said.

Raguna gave the Mayor a searching look. "Alright, but, I've got some rules: 1) Don't come less than 10ft near me. 2) We will not ask questions that are too personal. They may still be personal but, nothing of the past of the person, unless said person starts the conversation and is okay with the other asking questions. 3) You will follow all set rules, if you don't, you can imagine that all following meetings and conversations never happened. 4) Feelings of the people will be taking into consideration. So if one of us feels uncomfortable, that person will be given their space. 5) We will both treat each other as equals. 6) The only reason that you can surpass the 10ft distance mark would be if something is wrong with the other person and you want to help. 7) All talks will be in an open space, like the plaza, or at the farmhouse. 8) No trickery or manipulation will be involved, if there is, the effect will be the same as rule 3. 9) There will be NO screaming, if there is, same effect as rule number 3. 10) If either person feels the need to add a rule in future, it will be talked between the people involved, and if it's agreed upon; it will be added, if it's not agreed upon; there better be a good reason. If the reason isn't good enough, meaning that, the person that wants to add the rule was able to fix the problem the other person had with the rule, it will be added. If the person that's adding the rule can't fix the problem the other person has against it, the addition of the rule will be negated and it will be like it never happened." Raguna said, laying out the rules. "Do we have an agreement, Mayor?" Raguna inquired with a 'No-joking-around' look on his face.

"Those are a lot of rules, but I accept none-the-less." The Mayor agreed.

"Good, I'll write up a form with the rules, which will be signed by us both. If either of us declares that one of us broke the agreement and give good enough evidence of what the other did, in which case it would be a memory shown on a memory viewer, the form will automatically destroy itself, letting us know that the agreement is over and done with." Raguna explained.

"We can talk about it first before accusing the other, right?" Godwin asked.

"Of course, I will add that as the 11th rule: 11) Any disagreement will be talked out first, before accusing the other of something they might have unintentionally/unknowingly done. If the disagreement can't be resolved, then it is up to the person if they want to accuse the other and end the agreement." Raguna added the rule. "Do you still accept all terms and conditions?"

"Yes, I do." Godwin said soundly.

"Alright, I'll write up the 'Agreement From'once I get home. I'll then give it to you so that you can read over it and we will then sign it. I will also make some 'Agreement Reminders' that will have all the rules and conditions on it, so that we can view them whenever we want." Raguna said.

"Alright." Godwin agreed, he was secretly surprised though. _That ability to think up rules that fit the situation and the way he worded it, makes it seem professional. These types of agreements are business level agreements and sometimes even Royalty do agreements like these. He did this one with little to no problem. He knew that I wanted to help him feel less afraid of living under my laws, so he made his own rules for the two of us. Though, some of the rules seem to hint at something from his past, like the no shouting rule, manipulation rule, and the no less the 10ft away rule. Then he knew what the organization was doing…could it be that the organization did something to these three kids? If they did…_ Godwin let the threat float around. He didn't know why but, he was feeling sort of protective over the three kids, especially Raguna. He credited that to the fact that he cared about the people in his town, Kardia, and Raguna was a citizen of said town, though he also couldn't help but feel that there was something more to it than just caring for the people of Kardia.

Raguna saw that it was getting late and excused himself. He offered Micah and Kyle the option to stay at his house until they left and, of course, they readily agreed. Kyle ranted a bit about why Raguna would do that, even though Kyle thought that the rules had been magnificent.

"Kyle, my dear friend Kyle, you are forgetting the most important rule that we made." Micah teased, thankfully stopping Kyle from ranting again.

"What rule would that be?" Kyle asked, confused.

"Rule Number 1: ALWAYS trust Raguna's judgment of a person, place, or thing!" Micah said. Micah and Kyle started to laugh while Raguna rolled his eyes.

 **((I dare say that they're right.))** Matt said with a chuckle.

 _Oh c'mon! Even Matt is taking their side on this one._ Raguna thought with a bit of a chuckle.

* * *

 **2,791 words, that must be my longest.**

 **Sophie: What happened to Ivan's part?**

 **That will come up next chapter I believe, since I already have the idea, the chapter SHOULD be up sooner. Again, I said SHOULD. This chapter turned out longer than I thought it would be, so I had to stop at the end of Raguna's part. Sorry Ivan.**

 **Ivan: It's alright, it was fun to see how Raguna truly acts though.**

 **Raguna: Don't worry Ivan, I have a feeling that someday, you will be able to actually see it yourself.**

 **So questions: I tried to put some humor into this…Did you spot it, if so, which line/lines made you laugh/chuckle/giggle/snort/ect.**

 **Also, rules, What do you think of the rules? They do have some hints to Raguna's past, can you spot them? Ding, I feel like a "Can you spot the difference" game. Do you have any questions about the rules?**

 **What did you like about this chapter? Any questions for the story in general? I won't bite you if you ask questions!**

 **Leave ideas for what questions the Mayor and Raguna should ask each other, because I am stumped on that one.**

 **Speaking of the Mayor and Raguna, what do you think about these two? Their sort-of starting to appear, relationship? What do you think of the Mayor in particular, his feelings towards Raguna hint at something, what could it be?**

 **Ossu : ****The way I used it is the form of "Hey, man!" but, it could also be used as "Hey, dude!"**

 **I think that's all, enjoy the rest of your day guys!**

 **All of us: Please take the time to Review, Favorite and Follow! *Puppy dog eyes***


	9. You're Riddled!

**Hello there dear readers! First, I'd like to say thank you to the guest who reviewed! I'm glad you like the story so far!**

 **Sophie: We would also like to mention that you were our very first guest review! *smiles***

 **Anyway, for this chapter, I'm going to be going back to chapter 7. Chapter 8 was what happened around Raguna, when Ivan left.**

 **Raguna: Yep, I'd like to know what happened.**

 **Ivan: You'll know, but story you won't, unless our dear author allows my story version to tell yours.**

 **Ivan, Raguna, stop getting ahead of yourselves.**

 **Matt: Let them have their fun, Clara, or should I say CWB?**

 **Clara is fine, since it's part of the username.**

 **Ivan: Matt? Why are you here?**

 **Matt: Decided to show up.**

 **Raguna: By the way, story Ivan already suspects you exist.**

 **Matt: Not sure how that was possible though.**

 **Ivan: You'll know someday.**

 **Sophie: Anyhow;**

"Speaking"

/thoughts/

((Telepathy)) **((Telepathy))**

 **Raguna: CWB doesn't own anything except the plot of this fanfic!**

* * *

 **Chapter 9: You're Riddled!**

* * *

Last chapter (from 7): After some time Raguna and Ivan said goodbye to each other and Ivan went to the capital. Raguna went to sit on the couch and hoped that Ivan wouldn't be too late. Whatever was happening at Ivan's home, it left Raguna with a nasty taste of dread.

* * *

(Ivan's POV)

I exited Kardia and waited for a transport carriage to get here. I looked over my phone and saw my cousins' name in the list.

 _/I wonder what's wrong back home./_

I looked up at the sound of wheels and horses coming my way. The carriage got here faster than I thought it would.

"Hello there! Where would you be going today?" The rider said.

"Good day, sir. I'll be going to the capital today." I responded.

"Alright then, hop inside and I'll take you there."

I got inside the carriage and we started to leave Kardia. I was still worried about Raguna.

 _/I hope that Micah and Kyle will help him out./_

++++(Another Scene: The capital)

We finally get to the capital and I give the rider his pay. I look around and see the people walking around, the trees swaying with the wind, and the skyscrapers that belong to the huge company owners. I make my way towards a skyscraper that is surrounded by some houses and mini warehouses.

Once I get there I press down on the intercom.

" _Identify yourself."_ A female voice said on the other side.

"Ivan kōzoku, age 16." I said back to her.

" _Oh! Welcome back!"_ I then heard the gate click open. I pushed it and went inside.

I kept walking inside the company and greeted everyone along the way. It sometimes gets tiring to do that. I finally reach the top floor, which is where my cousin should be at right now.

I knock on the door of the office room.

"Come in!" A person yells from the inside.

"Bunch of idiots won't leave me alone today." The person muttered under their breath, or at least that's the part that I heard!

"Well, if you don't want me here you could've just said so." I say with a smirk, it's to tempting to tease him when he's like that.

The persons head snapped up and their eyes widened. He got up from the chair, went around the desk, walked or speed walked to me, and drew me into a hug. A hug that was to tight for my muscles liking!

"Ivan, your back!" He said.

"Of course I am cousin, you called for my help after all. Now if you would stop the death hug, I would be grateful." I was punched lightly on my shoulder.

"That's for your cheek kiddo." I laughed at that line.

"In all seriousness though, what's wrong, have you been able to decipher the threat?" I asked my cousin.

"We were able to decipher it but, it's either in some code language or, it's a riddle."

"A riddle?" I inquired

"Yeah, here it is, read it." He handed me the paper that held the threat, it read:

 _Healers, tanks, monsters, merchant, thief, and one unknown. One is useful but can't protect itself, the others a brute, one is needed, the other uses any means. There are the ones against the others; the others die one after another. Starting by the needed, followed soon after by the useful, the brute goes next, without him their already dead. By any means the rest will stay alive, but low trust will be their downfall. The unknown will be feared, but depending on the others, the unkown will either be their hope or their demise._

 _War's coming, but not war, war, it will only affect the money here. The battles have started and your demise will soon follow!_

I re-read the paper again, but I couldn't grasp it's meaning. The ending's a threat but the start…seemed more like a warning.

"I'm going to need time to decipher this, and while it is a threat, I get the feeling that's supposed to be more than that." I said.

"Yeah, I got that feeling as well, but the others are dead set on it being nothing more than a threat."

"Well, Gil, seems like we have a threat/mystery on our hands." I told him. Gil is a nickname, well ok, mispronunciation of my cousins' name. When I was little I always stopped at the "Gil" part 'cuz I could never fully mention "Gilbert".

++++(Another Scene: Bedroom)

I had talked with my cousin a bit more and then left to my room. *Sighs* I still can't wrap my head around this riddle…I have a feeling they worded it like that, just to make you feel lost while reading it!

TRING

That, was my cell phone. I take it out and see the message that popped on the screen. "Check in on Raguna", right, I could use the distraction. I clicked on the call button.

" _Hello?"_

" _Hey. Raguna, it's Ivan."_

" _Oh, Ivan, how are you doing?"_

" _I'm fine, I met up with my cousin, the problem was about a threat that was written to him."_

" _A threat!?"_

" _Yeah, they just recently deciphered it but…"_ I trailed of, wondering if I should tell him.

" _But what?"_ He truly sounded curious, I decided to indulge him a bit.

" _It's in some kind of riddle, I read it and it sounds like a threat but, part of me says that there's more to it than just that."_

" _Then you should listen to that part, instincts can go a long way, you know."_ The tone he said that in left me wondering if Raguna always went by instincts. _"What did the riddle say, anyway?"_ I weighted my choices, I really wanted to tell him what was happening but, I also didn't want to get him involved in this mess. If I'm going to keep talking to him, he's going to end up getting involved sooner or later, the more he knows the better he can protect himself, right?

I told him what the riddle said, he then asked me to text it to him, so I did, even if it took me a while. There was silence on the other end of the line until,

" _I think I know what it means, Ivan."_ That's impossible, that amount of time was enough for a read and a re-read of the riddle.

* * *

 **So, What do you guys think about the Riddle? Please try to at least guess what it could mean!**

 **All of us: Please Review, favorite, and follow!**

 **PS, sorry for any mistypes! I'm in a bit of a hurry!**


	10. Riddle Explained!

**Hello readers! Welcome to a new chapter!**

 **Raguna: About time you came back…**

 **Hey! I've been busy with school, that and practicing programming, catching up on games, specifically Story of Seasons: Trio of Towns (Marvelous). I also recently got into playing Fortnite Battle Royale.**

 **Ivan: Gamer huh, make sense that you know about us from the Bokujo monogatari(Spelling?) series.**

 **Matt: Previously known as Harvest Moon, then a split up happened and it became Story of Seasons.**

 **Haha, funny thing actually…I learned about Rune Factory first, and then I learned of the Harvest Moon series. Rune Factory is also what got me into the RPG genre as well.**

 **Everyone else: WHAT!?**

 ***Clears throat* Anywaaaay:**

"Speaking"

 _/thoughts/_

((Telepathy)) **((Telepathy))**

 **Everyone: Let's get started!**

* * *

 **Chapter 10: Riddle Deciphered!**

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++++(Another Scene: Raguna's POV)

I was surprised that Ivan was calling. I picked it up to see what he wanted but…I never expected the conversation would turn into a case to solve. The riddle isn't that hard to figure out, for my people at least. What worries me is that these terms are from our kingdom. Hopefully none of the people went rouge, no, I don't think so, there's just something about the way they worded it. If they really wanted to make it a riddle, they would've made it seem like a paradox.

" _You know what it means?"_ Ivan asked. I can hear he's curious, doesn't surprise me really, he must've spent more time than I did trying to solve this riddle.

"Yeah, I do, let me just read it aloud."

 _Healers, tanks, monsters, merchant, thief, and one unknown. One is useful but can't protect itself, the others a brute, one is needed, and the other uses any means. There are the ones against the others; the others die one after another. Starting by the needed, followed soon after by the useful, the brute goes next, without him their already dead. By any means the rest will stay alive, but low trust will be their downfall. The unknown will be feared, but depending on the others, the unknown will either be their hope or their demise._

 _War's coming, but not war, war, it will only affect the money here. The battles have started and your demise will soon follow!_

"Now to break it down, you might want to get a pen and some paper."

 _"Alright, give me a sec'."_ Ivan responded. _"I'm ready Raguna."_

"Alright, first sentence is: Healers, tanks, monsters, merchant, thief, and one unknown, this basically means Doctors, fighters, enemies, Politician, thief, which can be taken in a couple of ways. For example; an actual thief or someone/thing that is sneaky and get's what they want/need. The last one is a bit more complicated since they named then as an 'unknown', which might mean that they could be an ally, enemy, ally by truce, etcetera."

 _"It sounds like it's naming some sort of team…"_ Ivan said. He's correct though, it is a team, which is why I'm worried about this riddle.

"You're right, it is a team. Let me see the other sentences to find out why."

 _One is useful but can't protect itself, the others a brute, one is needed, and the other uses any means._

 _"_ The useful but can't protect itself is usually said to be a healer, which in this case, would be the doctor. The brute is the tank, or the fighter. The one that's needed must be the merchant, or the politician, because they would have the power and money to make the team prosper. The one that uses any means is the thief; we don't know where that one could come from. Maybe one of Norad's outlanders? They are the ones usually portrayed as thieves."

 _"Yeah that last one is true, but why restate who the people are?"_ Good question Ivan, luckily, I have an answer for it.

"That's because they are naming the ones from the team. The doctor, fighter, politician, and thief, but notice how they left out the monsters, or enemies, and the unknown one." I said.

 _'Oh right! I get leaving out the monsters, which in this case are the enemies, but why leave out the unknown?"_

"If we decipher it more, we may be able to figure that out."

 _There are the ones against the others; the others die one after another._

 _"_ The ones against the others are enemies, no matter which point of view you see it from. So they are talking about the monsters in this line. 'The others die one after another'." I stay quiet as the meaning of that line hit me harder than during the 'fast read' I did earlier.

 _"Raguna?"_ Ivan sounded worried.

"Sorry about that, Ivan. That line is exactly as it is written. It's saying that one by one the opposite side will die. Now even though it's simple, it has two meaning. The 'die' part may not refer to them actually dying, it could be that their reputation dies, but for some reason, I think it literally means 'die' as in death. The other meaning would be that it's a line that affects both sides. Since they aren't naming who exactly is the enemy."

 _"That's right…they didn't say it applied to the team! The monsters are the enemies of the team, so it could affect them. Then if you see it from the monster's point of view, the team would be the enemy so it could also apply to the team…That's problematic though, since we won't know which side it applies, unless it actually applies to both sides."_ That…that has to be the most logical thing I've heard outside of our kingdom. Especially from a Noradian…then again, I'm basing that on what I've seen of the people chosen to represent Norad. Those guys are idiots. End. Of. Discussion.

"That's right Ivan, it could affect either side, or both at the same time. On to the next line."

 _Starting by the needed, followed soon after by the useful, the brute goes next, without him their already dead._

"This is telling us in which order they would die…or would most likely die in, since these riddle are never 100 percent correct, 'starting by the needed', I believe that would be the politician, since they are the ones to provide for the team. 'Followed soon after by the useful', that means that the doctor would die after the politician. The brute, or fighter, would die after them. It ends it of saying 'without him their already dead', that basically means that without the fighter the remainder of the team has a 'close-to-none' chance of survival."

 _"Oh…well that ain't good. Though I can't help but notice that they keep leaving the 'unknown' one out of the things that mention the team…"_

"Yeah, I noticed that as well." It also worries me, because I have a feeling I know what this 'unknown' one is.

 _By any means the rest will stay alive, but low trust will be their downfall._

"It's saying that the remainder of the team will stay alive by doing anything they can think of to survive. It also says that 'low trust would be their downfall', so I'm thinking that the team thinks that one of them may be working for the enemy, or that they don't trust the others of the team to keep them all alive."

 _"Those two ideas sound probable. It worries me that this could cause more problems to the entirety of Norad and not just the people mentioned in this."_ Ivan sounds worried; I don't think I can somehow alleviate that worry either. I've never been good at things that deal with feelings…that, makes me sound like a robot.

"Yeah, it could cause trouble for Norad, but at the same time, it could just affect the team alone."

 _"That's true…"_ _Ivan trailed off._

"Anyhow…moving on."

 _The unknown will be feared, but depending on the others, the unknown will either be their hope or their demise._

"Again, this line isn't specifying who the 'others' are. They could be the team's hope and the enemy's demise, or the reverse; they could be the enemy's hope and the team's demise. It also mentions that the unknown will be feared, and that depending on the actions of the 'other', who are very vague in this sentence, they will be their hope, which might mean that they're going to be their allies and help, or their demise, which might mean that they're going to be the enemy's and destroy the opposing side. Unless of course, they don't end up joining either side and just do things that would benefit them in the long run, but I don't think that's the case for this one."

 _"The unknown will be feared and the actions of the others are what determine if they are enemies or allies…no matter the point of view. Makes them sound a bit mysterious but, they should have a reason to be like that right? I'm guessing they aren't either Noradian or Sechian." (AN: Pronounces ZZYYXZIAN, lol, I got from somewhere that 'sechs' was actually pronounced 'zzyyx'.)_

It's official, Noradians aren't all idiots! It's only the ones chosen to represent the entirety of Norad!

"You might just be correct. The way this 'unknown' is described, they don't seem to have an actual side…yet." Just add one more thing to my theory of who this 'unknown' may be, why don't you?!

 _War's coming, but not war, war, it will only affect the money here. The battles have started and your demise will soon follow!_

"War's coming but not war war, that means that it is going to be war but not in the commonly known sense of war. 'It will only affect the money here' could mean that it's a politics war, a war of companies, industries, corporations, organizations, etcetera."

 _"So it's basically a battle to see who the best entrepreneurs are?"_ Ivan asked, confused and baffled at the idea of something like that happening.

"It sounds absolutely ridiculous I know, but, there is a legend that I read about a year ago…I just need to find it. It said something about political wars, and I know for a fact that the last one was about a century ago. There might be someone alive from that time, considering that Noradians and Sechians don't age after 15. Ok, they do, but it takes a century for us to age just one year."

 _"Hmm, you're right, I think I'll tell this to my cousin, maybe he can find out if there is someone still in this world from that time period."_

"Alright, for the next line, it says that the battles have started and your demise will soon follow. This can't get clearer it's saying that the battles, which I'm guessing they are referring to the political battles of the political war, have started. Then they say that your demise will soon follow. The problem with this line is that they don't specify who the 'your' is. Which leaves open the idea that if could refer to both side, which makes me wonder if they sent this same riddle to all of the ones mentioned in it." I finally finished off the riddle.

 _"Hmm, yeah, it could've been sent to other people as well and not just us. The difference would be that the others may not have someone to help them decipher it. Thank you Raguna, for all the help you've just given up."_ I could hear Ivan's sincerity in his voice.

"I-it's nothing really, I'm glad I was of some help to you guys."

 _"ay, don't be so modest would you? You've been a great help, Raguna. Thank you."_ Ivan repeated.

"You're welcome Ivan." I replied, with my voice lowered a bit, still high enough to be heard though. I really don't deal well with emotions, half the time I don't even know what I myself feel, the only two emotions I recognize are sadness, because I usually get teary-eyed, and indifference, because I start not caring what happens, this one usually activates when I'm in a tight situation. All the other times, I have neutrality or a 'fine' emotional feeling. I am happy the most when I'm with Kyle, Micah, or the kid that I still have to find. I just don't deal well with emotions or people trying to get close to me. I may let them try to do that one, but rarely do any of them succeed. The only ones that were able to get close to me are the kid, for being who he is, Micah and Kyle, for having gone through the same thing as myself. Now that I think of it, I'm close to a lot of people in our kingdom, maybe not as close as Micah and Kyle, but close enough.

 _"Anyhow, my cousin called for me, I've got to go, but one question. Are you doing alright over there?"_ Ivan said with concern lacing his voice.

"Yeah, I'm alright, Micah and Kyle are staying over for tonight, I have no idea when they need to go back home. No trouble has arisen either."

 _"That's good to know._ *someone is heard in the background and Ivan says something to them* _Sorry Raguna, I've got to go."_

"It's alright, I hope you can work this out."

 _"Yeah, me too. Bye, Raguna."_

"Bye, Ivan." I then hung up the phone. I sighed thinking about the conversation and the riddle. Ivan says things that sometimes throw me for a loop, but he's nice and I've sort of warmed up to him. It may also be that instinct that tells me that I know who he is and that I could trust him with my life if it came down to it, but, my own mind/insecurities don't seem to agree with the sentiment. I like spending time with him, yes, but do I trust him? Maybe a bit, not entirely though. I still keep myself guarded around him, which means that I don't entirely trust him, though I do enjoy being with him, which means that I trust him a bit. Ugh, why does this have to be so complicated!

I shake my head and continue doing what I was doing before the call, making space for Micah and Kyle to sleep in somewhere. Most likely in my own room, since we did that for quite some time. We never had more than a one bedroom flat back in the day, and the organization tended to throw us into the same cell together. It's sort of therapeutic really. If one of us has a nightmare, one of the others is bound to wake up and calm the other down. We got accustomed to it ever since the time of the organization, when we tried to sleep in different part of the house, we each felt unprotected. We can sum all of this up to being paranoid.

I then head outside to check my mail and I see a paper inside. I take it out and gasp when I read the note...It was a riddle, the same riddle that was sent to Ivan's cousin!

"No, it can't be, I thought it might've been possible, but, I never wanted my theory confirmed." Raguna whispered to himself.

 **((Well, poopy, that's not going to end well. By the way, the bracelet can show me memories and flashbacks. I was wondering why so I went hunting for some info, found out it was because of some brain waves that it picks up on. Then I came back to the bracelet room and peeked into the conversation you were having with Ivan.))**

((Wow, you know, some of those things are really, uh, how do I say this…Stalker-like.)) I laughed when I felt Matt's amusement. Matt and I have been playing around with the bracelets and it seems that the bracelet doubles into a weapon; we haven't tried that out yet. We also haven't figured out how we could feel each other's moods, Matt searched for a bit and found out that it also had something to do with brainwaves but it was also mixed with transmitter wave. I have always been telepathic since I can remember which would be ever since I got kidnapped by that organization.

(Another Scene: Flashback)

"None-sense, you guys put in the same amount of work I did into re-building that kingdom. What I find funny is that the other kingdoms have no idea of our existence." Raguna retorted.

++++(End flashback)

 **((Huh, you really shouldn't have said that one line on that one day.))** Matt said.

((Shut it, Matt.)) I got lost in thoughts, getting this letter really confirmed my suspicions of who this 'unknown' is.

* * *

 ***Laughs* There you have it guys! Please excuse any typos, I spent 2-3 days writing this chapter. Got writer's block at some point trough it.**

 **Besides that, what do you guys think of this chapter? Was it good? How about all of that insight on Raguna's past? Any comments on that. I also explained a bit more of the bracelet as well.**

 **How was the interactions between Ivan and Raguna? Please comment about this, I'm a bit worried they might've been a bit robotic, but this is where most of Raguna's 'way of thinking' is revealed.**

 **What about Raguna and Matthew there at the end?**

 **Any questions about the story overall?**

 **All of us: Please review, favorite, and follow.**

 **P.S. The skits that I put at the top and bottom are usually for entertainment and informational purpose, also for some humor now and then. In case any of you were wondering that!**


	11. Chatting for Details

**Hello there, dear readers! Welcome to chapter 11!**

 **Ivan: SO, is it spelled Rouge or Rogue?**

 **Raguna and Matt: Rogue**

 **Yeah, I think I misspelled it.**

 **Matt: You think? I'm pretty sure it's Rogue NOT Rouge.**

 **Ivan: Hey Matt?**

 **Matt: …Yes? Ivan…**

 **Ivan: You better not hurt Raguna! If you do I will tear you limb from limb, then proceed to skin you, and turn your bones into dust!**

 ***Everyone slowly backs away***

 **Matt: I-I-I wouldn't ever hurt Raguna, I can assure you that much.**

 **Raguna: It's alright Ivan, I trust him but, thanks for caring so much about it. *hugs Ivan* *Ivan hugs back***

 ***Squeals* I need a pic! *Takes picture***

 **Ivan and Raguna: Hey!**

 ***chuckles***

 **Matt: *Smirks* Anyway:**

"Speaking"

 _/thoughts/_

((telepathy)) **((telepathy))**

 **Everyone: Let's get the chapter started!**

 **Matt: Also CWB owns nothing except the plot, myself, and the mysterious kid. Oh plus the riddle, she made that herself.**

* * *

 **Chapter 11: Chatting for details**

* * *

Last chapter: ((Shut it, Matt.)) I got lost in thoughts, getting this letter really confirmed my suspicions of who this 'unknown' is.

++++(Another Scene: Ivan's POV)

Once I got off the phone with Raguna I went to see what my cousin wanted. I'm currently sitting in front of him while having dinner.

"So Ivan, did I do something to upset you?" His question startled me.

"What? No, why would you even think that?" I asked him with wide eyes.

"Well, I wouldn't have minded if you stayed here a bit longer. I was worried I'd done something to drive you away without noticing." Gil said. I kind of feel bad for leaving so suddenly, but Raguna was there, I couldn't risk him not being there if I came back here to tell my cousin. Speaking of which, should I tell him the reason I left in the first place?

"No, you didn't do anything of that sort. To be honest, it was a spur of the moment decision, triggered by some factors." _/Wow, what a way to be detailed./_ I thought sarcastically. My cousin tilted his head at me, I know that he wants me to expand on the subject, the question is; should I do that or not? He must've seen my hesitation because he started talking.

"I may be curious but, you don't have to tell me if you don't want to." Gil said.

"It's not that, I just, you've taken me in and all, the least I could do is" I didn't get the chance to finish that sentence.

"Listen here Ivan, you are my cousin, my family. I wanted to help you, so I took custody of you. Your father should be the one in my spot right now, but sadly, he isn't here right now." I decided to cut in right here.

"He probably won't ever be in that spot again." I was surprised at the venom in my voice. "He shouldn't have done that…even after everything that happened; he still did something like that."

"Yes, he did, and we still don't know the effects of that injection, we don't know what it would do to you. Have you felt any different since that time? Has anything different happen?" Gil asked me, concern showing in his eyes. Different, huh, do you mean even the events with Raguna? Though, the guy I saw, could it be because of the injection? No, Raguna was seeing him as well; I don't think that's the effect of the injection.

"Not exactly, at least I don't think it is." I said.

"What do you mean? What happened?" Gil asked. I could hear that he was curious, but it ties in with Raguna…forget it, Gil deserves to know.

"I found him." It seemed like an abrupt change of topic but understanding covered Gil's expression.

"What?" He sounded like he didn't dare let himself hope for it to be true.

"I finally found him, I found Raguna!" I almost cried at that, it seemed like that fact hadn't settled in until now.

"That's great! Why didn't you bring him along though?" Gil asked me.

"I would've loved to do that but, he doesn't remember his life. He remembers certain years, but not us. Raguna being in Kardia is what influenced my spontaneous decision to stay there."

"Oh…but at the very least, he's been found! That's as good a start as any. All we have to do is wait for his memories to come back."

"That's my plan as well; anyway, for the 'different' part of your original question, it happened around Raguna." I stayed silent for a moment, figuring out how to word it.

"Ivan? What happened?" He asked, concerned.

"I saw…someone, the first time it was only for a few seconds; once I blinked he was gone. The second time, I felt him nearby, I'm still not sure if I've been able to see him completely yet, I know I haven't been able to see his face."

"That's weird; it could be the effect of the injection though. Why do you think it isn't?" Gil asked. I looked at him, contemplating how to say it.

"Raguna could see him as well, that's why. Raguna doesn't know I've seen the other one. I believe I heard Raguna call him Matt…I'm not sure about that, since I was pretty far away. It also seemed like Raguna could touch him." I said, trying to figure out what exactly was going on. I looked at Gil and he seemed surprised.

"That's weird, just who's the other one? I've heard of some old legends about people coming here from other dimensions by using a method of transport, usually something that can be worn and not draw attention, like jewelry that a person has. This guy might be one of them." Gil said. That's right, how did I forget about that legend? It has been said for centuries! It hasn't happened in a long time though, at least not in mass numbers. Could the one with Raguna really be from another dimension?

"That makes since, but why would I be able to see him? Shouldn't only other people with said 'jewelry' be the only ones able to interact with them?"

"Hmm, that's what I'm wondering as well. We don't know what the injection, which your father put into you, had. We need a way of finding out what it had in it. We could use the extraction rune, but that'd be painful for you, there must be another way!" Gil said, determined to help out as much as he could.

"I'd really like to know what it had as well but, that rune has some side effects that I don't want, leaving a person paralyzed for some time being one of them. I just hope that the effect is a good one and that I can use it to protect Raguna." I said. If it helps protects Raguna, then I won't complain.

"Speaking of Raguna…how is he?" Gil asked, tilting his head.

"Oh, he's doing fine, well, I think…" I trailed off, thinking about what he's told me of the organization, his past, and the flinching, that I am certain I didn't imagine.

"That…doesn't sound good. Anything I can help with?" Gil asked. He's always been like that. If we ever needed any help he was always quick to extend a helping hand.

"Not really, unless you can find information about an organization." I said.

"Organization? Which one?"

"Well…" (AN: Imagine Ivan explaining it, I'm queuing in a flashback)

++++(Another Scene: Flashback)

"I will tell you about the eagle and snakes first. The eagle is a predator and so is the snake. In this case the snakes are going to be the eagles' next meal, since they are prey for the eagle. The wooly being surrounded by snakes; means that it has been caught and has no escape, it just has to wait for its death. The lab coat on the eagle means that he predator is a scientist or something of that sort. The wooly having cat ears is a mixture between animals, which means experiments. They experiment on the prey and then throw it away like it left over food. The play with their prey, a.k.a eating it, and then throw it away when they can't play with their prey anymore." Raguna finished his explanation. I sit there in silence, trying to wrap my head around it, and trying to figure out what this has to do with Raguna. He mentioned experiments, but Raguna seems completely normal to me.

++++(Another Scene: End Flashback)

"Raguna explained that to you? Why did he mention experiments though?" I have to hold back a laugh at that, I'm still confused about everything that's happening and I've seen it from the driver's seat! I can't imagine what he must be feeling right now.

"I still don't have an answer to that, he doesn't look like he was experimented on, but then again; I don't look like I've been experimented on either." I lower my voice a bit; thinking about how I'd been in denial after my father did that.

"Ivan." I heard my cousin call out softly. He knows that I would relate my own experience with Raguna's. The feeling of knowing that something's different but not knowing what was different; Raguna must've felt like that if he was experimented on. Then the feeling of possible rejection from others…

"Ivan, no matter what happens; you'll always be part of my family and will always be treated as such." I could hear the sincerity in his voice.

"Thanks." I said with a small smile. He's always been accepting of the fact that I was experimented on; he wouldn't reject Raguna either if he was experimented on.

"Also, I was on the phone with Raguna when you called for me." I said.

"You were? What were you two talking about?" Gil asked.

"Well, I told him of the riddle, he already knew something was wrong here, without me even telling him. Anyhow, he helped decipher it. He has got the same opinion we have, 'that there was something more to it than being a threat'."

"So he also thought that, but what do you mean 'deciphered it'? We've been trying for hours to decipher the riddle." Gil said, wide-eyed.

"I mean that he figured it out," I said sarcastically "and it makes since as well." I then started to explain everything Raguna said. I gave him my notes and he read them over.

"It makes sense! I had forgotten about the political battles. I wonder how Raguna came across that legend." Gil said.

"I'm not certain about that, but what worries me is this 'unknown' thing. Who or what, are they? At one point it seemed like Raguna was defending them, the riddle said something that Raguna spoke against. I don't remember exactly what it was, but I got the feeling that he didn't want us to think badly about them." I explained.

"Hmm, he may know what this 'unknown' is then. If it sounded like that, then it stands to reason that he knows what , or who, the 'unknown' is. I say that we trust what he says, if he went through experiments and who knows what else at the hands of that organization, then he should be careful of who he lets in, right? If he wants to give the 'unknown' a chance, then they probably deserve it." Gil mussed to himself.

"You're right…We should give them a chance. According to the riddle, they haven't chosen a side yet. I think they would most likely not want to participate in this from the start." I said.

"Yeah, we should go searching for the other people that got this riddle." Gil said. After we talked some more I went to sleep since I needed to catch the carriage after breakfast.

"Ivan, as much as I would love for you to miss the carriage and stay here, you're going to be late." I looked to the clock and noticed that he was correct. I really was going to be late! I got up and put on my robe, or what is supposed to be a robe, it doesn't truly look like one to me. It is a different style though, and I've only ever seen the traditional ones.

"Take care of Raguna, Ivan." Gil said as he gave me a goodbye hug.

"I will, cousin." I said as I returned the hug, I had every intention of following through with that.

We parted ways and I got on the carriage and started my journey back to Kardia. I had already texted Raguna last night, telling him that I was going to come back today. I stopped by my house to drop off the robe and then headed over to Raguna's house.

Once I got to Raguna's house I stopped and looked at what was in front of Raguna's house. It was a brown haired cat with dark blue eyes. The cat (or was it a kit?) was licking a front paw. It seemed like it heard me approach since it looked up at me. I looked at the cat's eyes and the cat looked back, so intensely that I started to wonder if that was a normal. The cat then blinked twice and meowed, then it dashed into town.

 _/Rule number 1: always be ready for these types of things around Raguna. Rule number 2: Do not question things that happen around Raguna, or Kardia in general, if you want to keep a stable mind. It seems that the people got accustomed to not questioning things that happen around the town./_ I thought, a bit amused. I then approached the door to knock on it.

* * *

 ***Maniacal laugh* How do you like that ending!?**

 **Raguna: People are going to get fed up with those cliffies.**

 **Matt: not much happened in this chapter, why even add it?**

 **Ivan: Because, Matt, this chapter seems to be more of an introduction to my character, and Gil was in there a bit. It also seems to add mentions of the father, which ties in with the phone call I had a couple of chapters back.**

 **Sophie: What do the readers think about this chapter?**

 **How is the relationship between the characters going along?**

 **What do you think of the insight to Ivan's character? I had been so focused on Raguna that I said, "Well, Ivan, you're up! Character and plot development are cooking!"**

 **What about that last paragraph about the cat? What do you think of it?**

 **Any other questions for the story in general? I won't bite even if you're a guest…Why is it that guest usually don't leave reviews? *Pouts* (Some do, but the majority of them just read and go)**

 **Also Sidus Alatus, I will read the story! I just haven't been able to get around to it. By the way, if anyone wants another Rune Factory story to read, Sidus Alatus is writing one with the characters of Rune Factory 2! You guys should go read it, it's good!**

 **No Sidus, I ain't promoting you. :p**

 **I just think your story deserves to be read. Also I have a question, are we the only Rune Factory writers left for the games that aren't Rune Factory 4? I swear I've seen a bunch of Rune Factory 4, but I've never seen the ones for Rune Factory 1, 2, and 3. I've seen some but it's like looking for water in a desert.**

 **The ones I've found usually don't have Raguna and Ivan in it! A good one I read some time ago and the only one I can remember the title of is,** _ **Everybody loves Raguna**_ **I don't remember the author though. I truly do think that were the only authors/writers left that are currently writing and posting their story for the older games.**

(Please don't mind any typos I had in this chapter. No matter how much I read the chapters, I never seem to get all of them.)


	12. What Raguna?

**Hello there! Sorry for taking so long with this! I have a major writer's block.**

 **Matt *murmurs*: She still does…**

 **Shut it, Matt! Anywho…He's right, I'm just going to start the chapter with the slight idea that I've got. I will then proceed to let the chapter write itself.**

 **Raguna: We would also like to take the time to explain that since people take 100 years to age a year, after the age of 15, everyone is kind of…15. Some of the people are years apart from each other but, thanks to the "a century to age a year" thing, they are all 15. Unless CWB specifies that someone is NOT 15, then please assume that they are, 15.**

 **Thank you, Raguna. I almost forgot to explain that big fact to the readers. I was reading past chapters and noticed that I messed up on Ivan's age. His age is 15 NOT 16. Please disregard that, I believe it was a mistype since I was thinking they'd be 15 from the very start of the story.**

 **Raguna: No problem, Clara!**

 **Sophie: Bunch of little kids, getting distracted and not starting the chapter.**

 **Okay, I'll get right on that ma'am:**

"Speaking"

 _/thoughts/_

((Telepathy)) **((Telepathy))**

 **Ivan: CWB doesn't own Rune Factory. She only own Matt, the kid, the riddle, and the plot of this fanfic.**

 **Btw, please excuse the title of this chapter. I just felt that it somehow fit this chapter.**

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 **Chapter 12: What?...Raguna!**

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Last Chapter: Once I got to Raguna's house I stopped and looked at what was in front of Raguna's house. It was a brown haired cat with dark blue eyes. The cat (or was it a kit?) was licking a front paw. It seemed like it heard me approach since it looked up at me. I looked at the cat's eyes and the cat looked back, so intensely that I started to wonder if that was a normal. The cat then blinked twice and meowed, then it dashed into town.

 _/Rule number 1: always be ready for these types of things around Raguna. Rule number 2: Do not question things that happen around Raguna, or Kardia in general, if you want to keep a stable mind. It seems that the people got accustomed to not questioning things that happen around the town./_ I thought, a bit amused. I then approached the door to knock on it.

* * *

(Ivan's POV: still)

I waited for a couple of seconds after knocking on the door but nothing happened. I knocked again just in case and waited for bit longer. Once again, nothing happened.

 _/Is he home? He may have gone out for a moment./_

Seeing that nothing was going to happen, I started to walk towards my house when suddenly…

"Ahhhghhh!" I hear some sort of yell. It sounded like an animal. My curiosity gets the better of me and I run towards the sound.

"Ahhhggghh!" There it was again, I followed the new one and I found myself inside of the forest besides Raguna's house.

I hear some panting which is quickly followed by a groan and a whimpering sound, plus some gasps. I also hear footsteps from the other direction. That can only mean that someone else heard these noises.

"Are you alright!?" That voice…it seemed familiar. Where have I heard it before? I get closer and what I see surprises me. The one that spoke must've been Kyle, but that wasn't what astonished me to the point of horror. On the ground, clutching both of his sides was Raguna. Does that mean that it was Raguna making those noises before?

I was going to say something to announce that I was there, but Kyle started talking again.

"Raguna, you need to drink. Please don't allow yourself to suffer like this." Kyle sounded desperate. I know I really should say something, but curiosity is getting the better of me. I shouldn't let it get the better of me, but…

"I wanted to see how long I could last since you and Micah are going to be leaving today. This makes it clear that I can't last much without needing to drink again. Agh!" It pains me to hear Raguna in such pain. I want to go over and help, but it doesn't seem like I'll be able to. At this point, I think all I would manage to do is scare him off. If he doesn't want me to see him like this, he'll just run off. I hate feeling this helpless!

"Forget that! I'll come by no matter how many times you need me to! Just please Raguna, don't let yourself get like this." Kyle said, with clear desperation in his voice. A tiny part of my brain seems to ask "What in Norad is going on!?", while the other part says "Help him! But I can't! Doesn't matter! Just do something!" and another part offers up the thought of "This may be because of the experimentation he mentioned before…" All of my thoughts are rolling around in my brain, too fast for me to focus on just one of them.

Kyle pulls his sleeve up and puts his wrist in front of Raguna. What is he…?

"Drink, Raguna." Kyle says in a firm but gentle voice. Drink? Does he mean to drink from his wrist? Wait a second, there are three species…Could it be that…

My thoughts couldn't more jumbled up, but I got confirmation for my theory when I saw Raguna open his mouth and some fangs pop out. Raguna then bit Kyle's wrist, after a few seconds, Raguna closed his eyes. Relief was visible in Raguna's expression.

Kyle sighed in relief, or what I think is relief, and puts his free hand on top of Raguna's head. He gently pats Raguna's hair while he's drinking from Kyle.

Raguna pulls away after about a minute.

"Thanks Kyle." Raguna sounds like he's back to normal again.

"No problem Raguna. Just please, don't scare me like that again!" Kyle said, probably a bit more harshly then he most likely intended. Now, I'm only saying that because of what happened the second Kyle said those words.

"I-I'm sorry." Raguna looked so down that it metaphorically broke my heart. That was nothing compared to the tears that started pouring from his eyes. I never want to see him so upset, much less crying, again. I'll hand myself over to Firesome and Terrable if I'm the one to make him look like that. I have no idea how much more my heart can take.

Kyle seemed to get panicked when he saw Raguna start crying.

"Now, now, Raguna, shh…No need for those tears. They really don't suit you. I like seeing the smile more than the frown. Shh, I'm not mad at 'ya kiddo." Kyle said, while pulling Raguna into a hug. Raguna silently cried until he calmed down due to the soothing strokes that Kyle was giving to Raguna's hair.

That's when I noticed that they seemed to be awfully close. From what I've seen so far, Raguna doesn't seem to be the type to let people close to him. With Micah and Kyle, it seems like he's a completely different person. Which is Raguna's true self? The one that seems closed off, or the one that I've seen come out when Micah and Kyle are around? Maybe it's both?

I take one last look at Kyle trying to calm Raguna down, to make sure that Raguna is alright. I slowly get up and leave as quietly as I possibly can. I go back to my house and order some salad from the bar to pick up later. I then sit down on the couch so that I can sort through my thoughts, unconsciously closing my eyes.

++++( Another Scene: Raguna's POV: His house)

I've been home for quite a while now. I've been able to calm down from the, uh, incident this morning. It is now around 6:00pm, take or add a few minutes.

 _/By Aquaticus! That was so embarrassing! I won't say I didn't enjoy being comforted like that, especially the patting part, but that was down-right embarrassing!/_

I've actually calmed down quite a bit since this morning, what hasn't gone away is the feeling of sheer embarrassment.

 **((Raguna? Are you alright?))** Matt asked with a worried tone. Where are the days where I'd question if the tone was genuine or not?

((Yeah, or at least I will be. I'll explain it at some point, since I'm sure you're wondering what that was. You'll just have to wait until the second one that needs to hear this comes around. Actually, I'll text him right now.))

 **((Ok, if you're sure about it. I don't want to do or hear anything you wouldn't want me to.))** I could still hear some concern in Matt's voice.

((It's fine, besides, this will happen many more times.))

I finished writing the text and sent it, now all I have to do is wait for him to come over, because there is no doubt that he will come over here.

++++(Another Scene: Ivan's POV: His house)

My phone beeped and I took it out to check what it was. I see a text from Raguna.

 _Raguna: Ivan, please come over to my house, I believe I should explain something to you._

Straight to the point, huh? What would he need to explain to me though? Unless he knows that I was there this morning. I get up from the couch and make my way over to Raguna's house.

++++(Another Scene: Raguna's house: Ivan's POV)

I got to Raguna's house and he let me inside. Raguna took out some chocolate chip cookies and some milk. I took a cookie and bit into it. The chocolate chips were melted and it tasted even better then the store-bought version. Maybe I'm just a sucker for homemade things, but these are delicious!

"These are great!" I told Raguna, it seemed like Raguna was surprised at the compliment. He still smiled though, that's loads better than seeing him upset.

"Thanks." Raguna said quietly as he took a seat in front of me.

"Thanks for this morning as well…" Raguna said softly. 'This morning'? So he does know I was there? I looked at him with a curious expression and Raguna let out a small chuckle.

"I know you were there when I…" Raguna shook his head. "Anyhow, I know you were there and thought it was best if I explained." Raguna finished.

"You don't have to if you don't want to, Raguna." I said, not wanting to force him into anything. I may be curious but, I don't want Raguna to feel as if he has no other choice.

*Raguna sighs* "I don't know how you managed to do it. I truly don't but, you managed to gain my trust. Not my full trust, but some of it. For one, you haven't tried to manipulate me yet, and you haven't forced me into explaining anything either. You could've demanded answers about the organization, but you didn't. You accepted what I was willing to give out and I'm certain you had more questions, yet you didn't ask." Raguna explained. Everything that Raguna is saying is true. I did have more questions, but I wanted Raguna to be the one to come talk to me. Demanding answers would've made things worse and he would've been upset about it.

"Today, even though you saw that, you could've gone in right there and demanded answers, yet, you didn't.I'm glad you didn't since I would've probably freaked out and ran off, considering how bad of an emotional breakdown I was having. What's more is that you still came here. I knew you'd come but I was uncertain if you would've been afraid, or disgusted. You're the only one aside from Micah and Kyle that has managed to get this close to me, to the point that I'm okay with letting you be around me, so I didn't want to lose the friendship I feel with you. Others have tried to get closer to me, but they've all failed." Raguna shrugs and smiles sadly, the dejected tone in his voice makes me feel like my heart is being torn apart. Hearing that I'm the first one to get close to him makes me happy but, it's a bit sad that he hasn't been able to feel comfortable with anyone else.

"Some have tried to manipulate me, others tried to kill me, most have another purpose, and the rest start demanding answers and demanding that I open up to them. I may have been a bit more closed off to you then I would typically be, but I wanted to see how much I could push you." Raguna said, sadness creeping into his tone, he looked a bit regretful. What I'm getting from this is that, in other words, Raguna was testing me. I didn't know it, but he's probably been testing me this whole time. I gather up my courage to ask the one question that is in my mind right now.

"Which part was the test? I would ask about the other things but, I doubt you'd want to talk about them." Manipulation is certainly something I wouldn't want to talk about. It usually comes with deep roots into something I would usually not talk about. I don't think I would like to hear who tried to kill him because that would make me want to go and kill them, maybe set Firesome on them. Most of them having a hidden agenda when they approach you is a bit to common in the business world, so I've seen that a lot. It would still make me want to hunt down the ones that tried using him, or the ones that approached him with other purposes in mind.

"That's the other thing; you don't ask things of me that you think I wouldn't be comfortable with. The others wouldn't have cared about that. You've surpassed all the others by not doing the things they did, even though you wanted answers. I can feel that you still do. I'll explain that 'feeling' later since it has to do with what I am. As for the tests, the only true test was the one where I explained about the organization. I would've been okay with explaining a bit further, I may not have particularly liked explaining further, but I still would've done it. When I told you about the paranoia, you seemed to want to ask more on the topic, but you didn't. That was another of the test, it wasn't intentional but, I passed it off as a test for you. Most of the things can actually be passed off as tests, but my feelings through them are true. The one about the girl and the kid, they were both captured by the organization, that explanation, the very first I've given you, was not a test. It was accidental really, I don't know why but, my instincts told me it was okay to trust you with that. I was certain that you would demand answers, and while you did ask a question, you also left open the option of not having to tell you. Kind of like what you did at the beginning of this conversation. That in and of itself, was what allowed me to give you a chance." Raguna explained, sounding a bit happier at the end. Raguna's eyes look bright; I can tell he's happy.

What is he happy about? Could Raguna be happy because he was able to give me a chance to get closer to him? Is it because I haven't done anything bad against him? One thing that I know for certain is that Raguna's emotions and way of thinking seem to be complex…extremely complex.

I let out a small smile.

"I'm glad I was able to get to spend time with you Raguna. I know that you are closed off, but that doesn't bother me. I noticed the look of wonder when you would sometimes look at me. I'm now certain that it was because of one thing..." I look at Raguna seriously.

"Raguna, I'm not around you for something in exchange. The only thing I could possibly want from this is to get to know you better. Only in my worst nightmare would I try to hurt you. I've seen many people with hidden agendas trying to get close to me. I hated it when they did that, since it was hard to distinguish between the real person, and the mask they put on to hide their agenda. I know you may not believe me, Raguna, but I promise you that I would never do anything against you, or anything that would hurt you. Those are the last things I want to do." I said, determined to make my feelings as clear as possible.

Raguna looked me directly in the eyes, as if searching for something in my expression. He must've found what he was looking for because after a while, he gave me a smile.

"I had a feeling that's why you never questioned things and always let me have my space. I don't understand why though, you used to know me, even though I don't remember. If anyone had any right to demand answers, it would be you." Raguna asked, desperation creeping into his voice.

"No, Raguna, I still wouldn't have any right. There is nothing to give anyone the right to invade someone else's privacy. While I may have known you in the past, I don't know you now. To be fair, while some things have changed, a biggie being our relationship to each other, your personality is still the same. If it isn't then it would just be a bit worse, for example, you were closed off before and now you are even more closed off. Your personality hasn't changed much Raguna." I told him.

Raguna smiled and his eyes got a bit watery, for a second I thought I'd said something wrong…

"Thank you, Ivan." Raguna said quietly. I smiled at Raguna. I was mistaken, I hadn't upset him, Raguna was just relieved. This reaction though, made me wonder how many times Raguna had tried to get close to someone, just to end up hurt.

"You're welcome Raguna." I'll worry about hunting down the ones that dared to hurt him later, Raguna needs me now.

"I guess I should explain about today." I try to talk but Raguna cuts me off.

"I'm doing this because I want to, Ivan." That shut me up and I gave Raguna a nod.

"You see Ivan, I'm a…"

* * *

 **And we will never know what Raguna was about to say! Happy holidays everyone! I made this chappie extra long and interesting just for you guys! Please Review, they feed my motivation.**

 **Btw, this was your present, a longer chapter. Maybe a more interesting one?**

 **Questions:**

 **What do you think Raguna is? Hint: It's two species mixed into one person. Yikes. (I gave some hints in between this chapter and last chapter. (11-12))**

 **What about Ivan's thinking and Raguna's personality? Were those realistic?**

 **Also, what do you think of Raguna's relationship?**

 **Matt wasn't in this so much, lol. I had no idea what to do with him for this chapter. Though he has been hearing Raguna and Ivan's conversation, don't forget that.**

 **Any questions for me? I won't bite…Raguna might, but I won't! :D**

 **P.S.**

 **I sort of hopped onto the Fluff Express through this chapter. lol. Was the fluff good? You did notice the fluff right? Before anyone asks, Raguna will end up with a bachelorette.** **he he**

 **What do you think Raguna and Kyle's relationship is?**


	13. Explanations and Caring

**Hello there readers! I have come back once again, after a really long writer's block, and getting distracted with other stuff.**

 **Matt: They are going to hate you after that cliff hanger on the last chapter.**

 **Shut up Matt! This chapter may be shorter than the others since I don't really know what to do with this chapter.**

 **Raguna: In other words, she's "winging it". She's got an idea and will go off of it.**

 **Yep, the chapter will write itself from that idea. Actually, none of my chapters are planned; they just end up like they do.**

 **Ivan: Anyhow…**

"Speaking"

/thoughts/

((telepathy)) **((telepathy))**

 **Sophie: I have a feeling that more of those are going to pop up. *laughs***

 **What is it? Pick on author day? Someone just please say the disclaimer.**

 **Raguna *grins*: Of course, Claire!**

 **Claire?**

 **Ivan: His nickname for you.**

 **Oh.**

 **Raguna: CWB Doesn't own anything except for Matt, the kid, the riddle, and the plot of this fanfic!**

 **Everyone: Welcome to chapter 13!**

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 **Chapter 13: Explanations and Caring**

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Last chapter: "I guess I should explain about today." I try to talk but Raguna cuts me off.

"I'm doing this because I want to, Ivan." That shut me up and I gave Raguna a nod.

"You see Ivan, I'm a…"

* * *

(Third person Pov: Still the same place)

Raguna takes a deep breath before continuing.

"I'm a Nekopire. Do you know anything about them?" Raguna asked.

"Nekopire…? Hmm, I know they exist, but there isn't much known about them. At least, not in Norad. Sechs know a bit more about them but, not much. The legend says that they were close to the Virtualites, an extinct race now-a-days." Ivan said, trying to recall what he knew about them. Quite frankly, even between Noradian and Sechian knowledge of the Nekopire race, there still wasn't much known about them. The Nekopirian only trusted one race with their knowledge and that race is long gone, what's left of the Nekopires are rumors and myths.

Raguna laughs before answering. "Extinct, aren't they?" A small knowing smile appeared on Raguna's face.

 _/Raguna, why does it seem like you know what happened with the Virtualites? /_ Ivan thought.

 _ **/Virtualites? I'll have to look into them once I get out of the room. I usually have books on every species out there./**_ Matt thought.

"Back to the Nekopire race, though. It seems that people don't know much about them so, I guess I should start from the beginning." Raguna fell quite, thinking about a good way to explain things to Ivan. Ivan looked at Raguna, wondering what this would reveal about Raguna. Ivan was wondering if Raguna would say how he got turned into one, and not just explain what the species is.

"You see," Raguna started, "Nekopire is an alien race." Raguna had to hold back a laugh at Ivan's and Matt's, who had appeared in holographic form a few moments ago, looks of disbelief.

"You're pullin' my leg, aren't you?" Ivan questioned.

"Nope, one hundred percent true." Raguna laughed.

"B-b-but, aliens!?" Ivan said, incoherently.

 **((I believe I'm on Ivan's boat, Raguna. Aliens? You've got to be kidding me.))**

((Look at the one who's talking.)) Raguna teased.

 **((R-Raguna, why must you wound me so.))** Matt said in mock hurt. Raguna had to force himself not to laugh, since Ivan was there.

++++(Same place: During Raguna's conversation)(AN: That makes sense, right?)

Ivan knew that Raguna had been quite for a couple of seconds. If it had been in the past, Ivan would've passed it off as Raguna getting lost in thought, but now…not so much.

 _/I'm almost certain the guy I saw is from another dimension, just like the legend said. That legend also said something about the powers that each item (jewelry) gives. The most common power in that legend is 'telepathy'. /_ Ivan thought.

Ivan see's Raguna smile, and Raguna let out a soft chuckle but suppressed it. That was what made Ivan certain that Raguna was talking to the other guy; which cemented the theory of the guy being one from the legend.

++++(Same place: After Raguna's conversation) (Sorry if I'm pointing out the obvious. Not really, but, sorry…)

"Seriously? Norad has dragons, elves, Sechians for neighbors, a wide arrange of amnesiacs, dungeons in form of caves, monsters inside said caves, and all the legends and myths that there are, you can't possibly tell me that aliens are out of the question!" Raguna exclaimed, and while Ivan and Matt hated to admit it…

"You have a point." **((You have a point.))** Ivan and Matt said at the same time.

Raguna shakes his head, almost fondly, and continues. "The Nekopires came here, seeking refuge from a tyrant on their world. Once they came here they met with the Noradians, and they quickly left because the ones chosen to represent Norad, started _hunting them down, even though the Nekopires had only wanted refuge._ " The venom didn't go unnoticed by anyone present. Ivan was starting to worry that Raguna might have something against Noradians. According to the history Raguna was telling him, Noradians were the first to turn the Nekopires away, and considering that Raguna was now a Nekopire…hopefully the dislike for Norad wasn't hereditary.

Raguna noticed the worried look on Ivan's face. Raguna thought back on anything he may have said, that might cause worry, and he has to resist the urge to face palm.

 _/I'm an idiot. Ivan's a Noradian, Nekopires dislike Noradians, and I'm a Nekopire. Not a good combination. I don't hate Ivan though, even following the Nekopire instinct, I never hated him. In fact, the Nekopire instinct trusted Ivan from the start. /_ Raguna thought.

"Ivan, I don't dislike Noradians." Ivan smiles a bit, relieved that Raguna didn't dislike him. "Now that doesn't mean that the representatives are off the hook. I'm still wondering the sanity of Norad as a whole, because the people are the ones that chose them to represent Norad!" Raguna explained.

"I take it you don't like the ones that represent Norad, but why do you feel that way?" Ivan was curious. Ivan wanted to know if Raguna's dislike for the representatives was because of what happened to the Nekopire ancestors, or if it was because of something he saw/heard them do.

 **((I am curious as well.))** Matt put his thought in.

"'Why?' Well, that's easy. They are idiots, to the point that the answer might be staring them right in the face, and it would take them, _ten years_ , to see it." Raguna said, stressing out how long it would take them to get the answer.

"You've got a point on that one, they really are idiots. I wonder if the ones that voted for them or even more idiotic." Ivan said, with a smirk on his face.

*Raguna does a noise with his tongue* "Most likely." Raguna says with humor and then he smiles.

"Now, stop getting me sidetracked! The Nekopire then met a Sechian and cautiously asked them for refuge. The Sechian leader welcomed them with open arms and thought them about this world/dimension. The Nekopires stayed with the Sechian race for quite some time, until Norad's representatives found out that the Nekopires were staying with them, and then Norad attacked Sechs. That was the very first war between the two lands. After the war was over the Sechians still wanted to give the Nekopires refuge. The Nekopires refused, saying that causing that war was the least they wanted to do, and that staying there would only cause more wars. The Sechian leader was sad to see them go, but understood the reason they had for leaving. The leader gave them a few supplies and the Nekopire gave him an heirloom. The heirloom was a symbol of friendship and peace between the species, and it was to be passed down from generation to generation. That way, if any Nekopire descendants came, they would know what family helped their ancestors out. The heirloom also had a protection rune on it, if anyone, even a Nekopire, attempted to attack the family, the person would get shocked, or it would put up a shield(for long range attacks). The rune couldn't hurt Nekopire's unless the brainwave detector, detected bad brainwaves; the equivalent to bad intentions. Any questions so far?" Raguna stopped and asked, a bit tired from all the speaking and thinking he had been doing.

Ivan stayed quiet for a few seconds, thinking about what Raguna had said.

 _/If what Raguna is saying is actually accurate then that would mean that Noradians are all-time jerks, Norad caused the first war, and not the other way around, like we've been told our whole lives. The Nekopires refused refuge in order to not cause any more wars amongst Norad and Sechs. Yet we still have wars with them…Why? Why do we keep fighting them? Is it because of the same reason, or did something else happen down the road that continued the fighting?/_ Ivan thought.

"So," Ivan started, "Nekopires didn't take refuge with the Sechians in order to stop the wars that could happen?" At Raguna's nod , Ivan thought; _/Man, that's selflessness to the max, Noradians wouldn't have cared if they cause wars for the ones offering them refuge. Then again, the Nekopires were escaping a tyrant, they possibly had their fair share of wars because of the tyrant./_

"Did they leave because they didn't want wars to happen; because they themselves had been through wars and had seen the destruction they caused?" Ivan asked. Raguna looked surprised but nodded none-the-less.

"Yes, that's exactly right." Raguna said. _/I can't believe he got that on his first try, the Sechians had taken a bit longer in finding out the reasoning behind the Nekopires leaving./_ Raguna thought, impressed.

"Raguna," Ivan paused for a second, "what do you think of Norad?" Ivan wasn't going to ask the question, at least not that bluntly, but he truly needed to know what Raguna thought of their homeland. Ivan was born and raised in Norad, along with Raguna.

++++(Same Scene: Ivan's POV)

Raguna gave a small sigh and I wondered if it had any meaning behind it.

"Is it because of the history with the Nekopires?" Raguna asked me, I guess he was wondering why I decided to ask that. I nodded, letting him know that, that was indeed the reason I asked him.

Raguna shifts around a bit and somewhat nervously, I noticed, continues talking.

"I don't hate Norad, but I don't particularly like them either. It's technically a like-dislike relationship that I have with Norad. I like it, because this is where I was born, I can't hate, or even dislike, Noradians because I AM a Noradian. I can dislike Norad itself since…" Raguna trailed off, his eyes seemed so lost that I felt a pang in my heart.

 _/At least he remembers his birthplace, but does he hate Norad? He said he couldn't hate NORADIANS, that doesn't cover the things Norad does and stands for./_

"Raguna? Are you alright?" I asked softly, and Raguna jumped a bit.

"Sorry, Ivan, I'm alright." Raguna said. _/*sigh* Doesn't seem that way, Raguna./_

"Anyway, the reason I CAN dislike Norad is…it's…" Raguna trailed of again. _/He's having a hard time saying it./_

"Raguna, it's alright if you don't want to say it, you shouldn't force yourself too." I told him gently, I'm afraid that if I were to speak to loud, he'd go into panic. He did get startled when I called out to him earlier.

++++(Same Scene: Raguna's POV)

Shock, that's all that I'm feeling right now. _"Raguna, it's alright if you don't want to say it, you shouldn't force yourself too."_

Nobody has truly giving me options whether to talk about things or not. When they did, it was reluctant, and the look of disappointment when I didn't say anything was a bit too much for me to handle. Noradians never truly understand what it's like to have to fend for themselves; they thrive in groups, after all. While the Virtualites are like that as well, we are more secluded. We technically enjoy keeping to ourselves, haha. Though when the time to stand united as one comes, we are always there to help each other until the bitter end.

Now here comes Ivan, going against everything that has ever been said about Noradians. He hasn't tried to use me for anything, or forced me to talk, or spend time with him. Ivan's…a mystery, a mystery indeed.

I shake my head. "No," I start, "I want to say this. It's because Norad, Norad…" Ugh! Just say it already! Why am I taking so long in saying this. I'm just, worried he'll hate me. Who'd want a broken experiment?

I take a deep breath. "It's because the Organization was of Norad and they experimented on me." I say quickly, in one breath, before I lose my nerve to say it.

++++(Same Scene: Ivan's POV)

 _. "It's because the Organization was of Norad and they experimented on me."_ These words, froze me to the core. The organization is a, bottle flipping, Noradian organization. I felt my heart cry out a little.

 _/By Firesome and Terrable! I've failed Raguna 10 times over by now! Norad's own people, all this time, we thought it'd been Sechians. Now it turns out that, they culprits behind his kidnapping were Noradians all along./_

"Raguna…" I have no idea what to say.

"Do you hate me?" My head shot up to look at Raguna in surprise. He said it so low that if it weren't for the facts that he's right across from me, I most likely wouldn't have heard it. I don't think he even intended for me to hear it.

"What? No! Why would you think that, Raguna?" I asked, still to shocked to even notice that the words left my mouth.

"Well, they experimented on me, I'm not normal. Useless, monster, defective, worthless…" Raguna keeps going but my mind shuts down, they only thought being 'No!Nononononono!No!'. I make up my mind and walk over to Raguna, he stops once he notices me approaching. I lift my hand, wanting to pull him into a hug but, Raguna looked so scared when he saw me lift my hand. So much fear, as if I were going to hit him.

My stomach and heart sank at that realization, while multiple thoughts of how to murder the organization were going through my head. When the attack in the plaza happened, Raguna seemed fine with letting me close. Though that could've easily been because he was too far gone in his memories to notice, in detail, what I was doing. By the time he snapped out of it, he was most likely remembering something else. Maybe someone else doing the same thing I did, and that's why he didn't immediately pull away from me?

I ignored Raguna's expression and hugged him, Raguna gave a flinch in my arms. I try to ignore that as well and start patting his head, the same thing I did in the plaza.

"Raguna, you are _not_ any of those things. You are kind, patient, calm, and tactical. You are the best _person_ I've ever had the pleasure of meeting. You can do a lot of things others can't Raguna, you've handled everything on your own and are still going strong. You are a person, who can feel, fail, and prevail at many things, don't let anyone else tell you otherwise." I said, while hugging him. Raguna seems to have calmed down a bit more. Raguna then turns around and, amazingly, hugs me back. I looked closer to notice that Raguna was silently crying onto my chest. I pulled him closer and started humming, something I used to do when he got bullied at school.

"Thanks, Ivvy." Raguna said. My heart almost stopped at the nickname, that was what we used to call me when we were kids.

"No problem kiddo." I said, even though Raguna doesn't seem to believe what I had said. It's going to take some time, quite a long time for him to understand that what I said is the truth, but I'm willing to wait.

 _/Little one…I won't fail you again, I promise./_ We kept hugging each other a bit longer, Raguna wanting the comfort and I, gladly giving it to him.

* * *

 **WHOO! I am done! How's that for a chapter! This explanation isn't over yet though, so expect there to be more on the next chapter.**

 **Raguna: That's…cute.**

 **Ivan: Real cute ending right there, Clara.**

 **Thanks guys, I appreciate that.**

 **How about you, readers?**

 **How was that ending for you?**

 **What do you think of Raguna and Ivan now?**

 **Any guesses as to who they are to each other?**

 **MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION: Was this realistic? And, Was this chapter any good?**

 **All of us: Please Review, Favorite, and Follow!**

 **Edit(5/4/2018): Nothing changed with the chapter, just adding in some lines and underlining stuff. I tried fixing typos and mistypes, but I'm not sure that I got them all.**


	14. Announcement

**Hey there guys, CWB here, I'm in school and don't think I'll be able to finish my Rune Adventurers fanfic. I will leave this fanfic up but it will most likely never be completed. I will of course, put it up for adoption, you can change the storyline if you want to. Just PM me, so that I can put on my fic who adopted it.**

 **I'm terribly sorry for having to leave it like this, but I have to pay more attention to my school. I might never come back to this, and I don't promise anything but I may make another story throughout my school; I just won't post it until it is finished. (If it is ever finished.)**

 **That's another reason I won't continue this, the story is a bit messed up because of doing it one chapter at a time. So if I do make another story during school, it'll be a one-shot, or it won't be posted until it is completed. The storyline might different but Raguna and Ivan will always be a part of my stories. :D**

 **Once again, I'm very sorry for leaving this story, I almost don't want to leave it, but I must, so much time has passed that I forgot where this story was even going. With school starting again, I'm sure I won't be able to continue. This has been CWB, 'til next time, my readers.**


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